2006 Atlanta Falcons season

"at the Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana"
Following two-straight wins over two division opponents (the Bucs and the Panthers), the Falcons flew to the Louisiana Superdome to take on the New Orleans Saints (who were playing in the Superdome for the first time since Dec. '04) for an NFC South match-up on Monday Night. From the get-go the Falcons trailed, when they had a punt blocked by Saints safety Steve Gleason and DB Curtis Deloatch landed on the ball in the end zone for the touchdown. The Falcons would respond, as kicker Morten Andersen (who used to play for the Saints) kicked a 26-yard field goal. Unfortunately, that would be their only score of the night, as WR Devery Henderson ran for an 11-yard TD on a double reverse. Then, Saints kicker John Carney would provide the remaining points for the New Orleans, as he kicked two field goals in the second quarter (a 37-yarder and a 51-yarder) and one field goal in the third (a 20-yarder). The Falcons would fall to 2-1, as their offense got swapped, battered, and bruised. QB Michael Vick got sacked five times, while he and RB Warrick Dunn would only combine for 101 rushing yards.

Week 4: vs. Arizona Cardinals

"at Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio"
In Week 8, the Falcons traveled to Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati to take on the Bengals. The star of the game would once again be QB Michael Vick. Vick had the 2nd best game of his career with a quarterback rating of 140.6. Vick passed for a season high 291 yards and 3 touchdowns finding Alge Crumpler, Michael Jenkins and Justin Griffith. The Falcons were down early to the Bengals 14-6, but were leading 29-20 with 7 minutes remaining. A late touchdown to the Bengals set up a thrilling finish to the match, with Atlanta's defence proving too tough for Cincinnati, sacking Bengal's QB Carson Palmer to seal the match.

Week 9: at Detroit Lions

"at M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland"
The Falcons traveled to M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore to take on the Ravens only to succumb to the first-place AFC North Ravens. In the start of the game Falcons jumped out a 7-0 lead. Michael Vick completed a 12-yard pass to WR Michael Jenkins for a touchdown, but the Ravens using the kick/punt returns by returner B.J. Sams, to pick up a total impressive 212 yards on six carries to dominate the second half. Michael Vick had six carries also, but could not gain sufficient yards against the sturdy Raven's defense. Michael Vick was sacked a total five times. The Falcons managed to get a field goal to make a score of 10-17 in second half, but RB Jamal Lewis ran for one more touchdown for 5 yards, which set the score 10-24. RB Jamal Lewis finished with a 91-yard, 3-TD performance, ending his 35-game multi-TD drought. Michael Vick had 6 carries for 54 yards and completed 11 out of 21 passes for 127 yards. Falcons drop to a disappointing record of 5-5 and has had their third consecutive loss this season.

Week 12: vs. New Orleans Saints

"at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida"
The Falcons traveled to Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on December 10 and squared off in an NFC South rematch against their division rival, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Their victory completed a season sweep. The first quarter started off with the Falcons punting away on their first possession. The Bucs then came back with a 10-play drive that resulted in a 42-yard field goal by kicker Matt Bryant. The second quarter saw Tampa Bay scoring another Bryant FG after a 12-play drive. In the third quarter, Atlanta scored their first points of the game off a 54-yard fumble return by OLB Demorrio Williams. The fumble occurred after Tampa QB Bruce Gradkowski lost the ball upon being sacked by Falcons DE John Abraham. Later in the same quarter, the Falcons went on to score another touchdown after a 21-yard run up the middle by FB Justin Griffith that completed a 9-play drive. Finally, in the fourth quarter, Atlanta sealed the game victory after picking up a field goal by kicker Morten Andersen that followed another Tampa Bay fumble by RB Carnell "Cadillac" Williams. Atlanta picked up its second win in a row, raising their record to 7-6.

Week 15: vs. Dallas Cowboys

"at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania"
Trying to end their season on a positive note, the Falcons flew to Lincoln Financial Field for a Week 17 intraconference fight with the playoff-bound Philadelphia Eagles. In the first quarter, the Eagles drew first blood as kicker David Akers nailed a 41-yard field goal. Afterwards, Atlanta took the lead with QB Michael Vick completing a 7-yard TD pass to RB Warrick Dunn. However, Philadelphia flew back into the lead with back-up QB A.J. Feeley completing a 14-yard TD pass to TE Matt Schobel. In the second quarter, the Falcons tied the game with kicker Morten Andersen nailing a 45-yard field goal. However, the Eagles responded with Feeley completing a 5-yard TD pass to WR Jason Avant. After a scoreless third quarter, Atlanta responded in the fourth quarter with back-up QB Matt Schaub completing a 9-yard TD pass to TE Alge Crumpler. However, Philadelphia wrapped up the game with Feeley completing a 89-yard touchdown pass to WR Hank Baskett. With the loss, the Falcons ended its season at 7-9.

In the aftermath, Jim Mora, Jr. ended up getting fired on New Year's Day, ending his three-year tenure as head coach.

Division standings

sequence
prev = 2005 Atlanta Falcons season
list = 2006 Atlanta Falcons season
next = 2007 Atlanta Falcons season