Today, the Atlanta Falcons are gearing up for the 2024 season under first-year head coach Raheem Morris, hoping to rebound from a 7-10 campaign that saw the end of Arthur Smith’s tenure.
Fifty-nine years ago today, the franchise was slapped on the butt and brought to life as the National Football League’s newest bouncing baby boy.
Before the birth, however, there was some question about paternity.
Because while it marked the debut of big-league football in the Deep South, it also highlighted yet another battle between the NFL and American Football League.
On June 9, 1965, the AFL granted Atlanta an expansion club for 1966 in hopes of beating the NFL – which was also wooing the Southern metropolis – to the punch. The eight-team rival to the 14-team senior circuit had already rapidly closed the talent gap, and after playing five mostly successful seasons, it was looking to expand its footprint.
The Cox Broadcasting Corporation was awarded the AFL franchise for $7.5 million, but there was still a major roadblock to clear; the Atlanta Stadium Authority informed both football leagues that it would wait until July 1 to make any deal concerning rental of its new 57,000-seat facility, which was completed on April 9, 1965, at a cost of $18 million.
“It is not up to us to choose among responsible owners holding franchises for 1966,” the authority said in a written statement. “A committee has been appointed to negotiate with any other applicants. July 1 is the deadline.”
AFL commissioner Joe Foss suggested to United Press International that a place to play wouldn’t be an issue.
“(Cox Broadcasting Corporation) has given us reasonable assurance that it would have the new stadium in which to play in Atlanta,” he said.
It just so happened that NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle was in Atlanta the same day the AFL made its announcement, further muddying the waters.
“Atlanta is a prime prospect for NFL expansion,” Rozelle told the Associated Press. “We could expand with no trouble in 1966. We have discussed this.”
By June 11 there were already rumors that the stadium authority was ready to make a deal with the NFL. On June 12, the Nashville Banner broke the story that Atlanta would, in fact, be joining the NFL and the AFL franchise would be “returned to the league.”
On June 30 – one day before the deadline issued by the Atlanta Stadium Authority – 39-year-old Atlanta businessman Rankin Smith brought the NFL to Georgia for $9 million.
“It’s a life-long dream,” Smith said in a UPI story. “Doesn’t every adult male in America want to own his own football team?”
An agreement was quickly reached to play in the city’s venue (christened Atlanta Stadium and later renamed Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium).
“I can only say that this is a great day for Atlanta,” Rozelle told AP. “But, more than for Atlanta, it’s a great day for the National Football League.”
There was immediate speculation about who the head coach would be, ranging from Paul Brown to Bud Wilkinson to Frank Broyles. The biggest news, though, was that the NFL outmaneuvered the AFL in securing an untapped market coveted by both.
To the AFL’s credit, league offcials took the setback in stride – at least publicly.
“We wish Atlanta the best,” Milt Woodard, assistant commissioner of the AFL, said. “We win some and lose some.”
Thus, Atlanta became the flagship of the NFL’s Southeast connection, which now includes the New Orleans Saints, Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Carolina Panthers, Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans. Speaking of the Dolphins, they became the ninth AFL franchise in 1966, giving that organization a southern locale after all.
And in the end, things worked out quite well for all involved as the 16-team NFL and 10-team AFL merged in 1970 to form what has grown into pro football’s 600-pound gorilla.