Head coach Mike Smith Owner Arthur Blank Record 4–12 | General manager Thomas Dimitroff Home field Georgia Dome Division place 3rd NFC South | |
The 2013 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise's 48th season in the National Football League and the sixth under head coach Mike Smith. An expected Super Bowl contender riddled with injuries, the Falcons had a tough start to the season, finishing with a 4–12 record and failing to improve their 13–3 record from 2012.
Contents
- 2013 draft class
- Regular season
- Week 1 at New Orleans Saints
- Week 2 vs St Louis Rams
- Week 3 at Miami Dolphins
- Week 4 vs New England Patriots
- Week 5 vs New York Jets
- Week 7 vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Week 8 at Arizona Cardinals
- Week 9 at Carolina Panthers
- Week 10 vs Seattle Seahawks
- Week 11 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Week 12 vs New Orleans Saints
- Week 13 at Buffalo Bills
- Week 14 at Green Bay Packers
- Week 15 vs Washington Redskins
- Week 16 at San Francisco 49ers
- Week 17 vs Carolina Panthers
- References
2013 draft class
Notes
^[a] The Falcons traded their first- (No. 30 overall), third (No. 92 overall) and sixth- (No. 198 overall) round selections to the St. Louis Rams in exchange for the Rams' 2013 first-round selection (No. 22 overall) and a 2015 seventh-round selection. ^[b] Compensatory selection. ^[c] The Falcons traded their fifth- (No. 163 overall) and original seventh- (No. 236 overall) round selections to the Chicago Bears in exchange for the Bears' fifth-round selection (No. 153 overall).Regular season
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. # Indicates that the Falcons were the visiting team in the Bills Toronto Series.Week 1: at New Orleans Saints
The Falcons would travel to New Orleans to open their season. The Falcons would carry a 17-13 lead into the fourth quarter, but the Saints would score a touchdown with 6:22 remaining. The Falcons would try to rally, but the comeback fell short, as the Saints would add a field goal to win 23-17. With the loss, the Falcons started their season 0-1 for the second time in 3 seasons.
Week 2: vs. St. Louis Rams
The Falcons would return to Atlanta for their home opener against the Rams. The Falcons would have a big first half, cruising to a 24-3 lead at halftime. St. Louis would try to come back, and outscored Atlanta 21-7 in the second half, but it was not enough as the Falcons held on for the win. With the win, the Falcons evened their record at 1-1.
Week 3: at Miami Dolphins
The Falcons would lead the entire game until the Dolphins went down to score the game winning touchdown with 38 seconds remaining. The Falcons would try to go down to the end zone to pull out the win, but they would not, and the Falcons would lose 27-23 to the Miami Dolphins. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 1-2.
Week 4: vs. New England Patriots
The Falcons would go back home for a Sunday Night Football game against the hated New England Patriots. The Falcons would put up a good fight, but they would lose a close shootout against the undefeated Patriots. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 1-3.
Week 5: vs. New York Jets
The Falcons would go down the field to score with 1:54 remaining on a Matt Bryant field goal. However, the Jets would go down and kick a field goal as time expired to give the Jets the win. With the heartbreaking loss, the Falcons fell to 1-4 for the first time since 2007.
Week 7: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Falcons would stay home for a divisional game against winless Tampa Bay. The Falcons would never trail during the game, and they would win this game 31-23. The Falcons would cruise to a 24-10 lead at halftime, and held off a second half Tampa Bay rally to win. With the win, the Falcons improved to 2-4 and sent Tampa Bay to 0-7.
Week 8: at Arizona Cardinals
The Falcons would travel to Arizona to take on the Cardinals. The Falcons would struggle all game, committing 4 turnovers (all interceptions by Matt Ryan) as they lost 27-13. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 2-5.
Week 9: at Carolina Panthers
The Falcons would go to Carolina for a showdown with the Panthers. The Falcons would once again struggle as they would commit 4 turnovers for the second straight week as they lost 34-10 to Carolina. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 2-6.
Week 10: vs. Seattle Seahawks
In a rematch of last seasons divisional game, the Falcons went down easily this time to Seattle, losing 33-10. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 2-7.
Week 11: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Falcons would travel to Tampa Bay for game 2 against the Bucs. The Falcons would suffer a mountain of embarrassment, as they lost 41-28 to the 1-win Buccaneers. It was the most points the Bucs had scored all season and the most points the Falcons had surrendered all season. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 2-8.
Week 12: vs. New Orleans Saints
With the loss, coupled with wins by the Cardinals, 49ers and the Panthers, the Falcons were the first team this season to be eliminated from playoff contention.
Week 13: at Buffalo Bills
In this game, the Falcons would travel to Toronto for their game against the Bills, as it was the Bills Toronto game for the 2013 season. The Bills would lead 31-24 during the 4th quarter, but the Falcons would go down and score the game-tying touchdown with 1:28 remaining in regulation. In overtime, the Falcons would win on a Matt Bryant field goal to give the Falcons the win. With the win, the Falcons would end their 5-game losing streak and improve to 3-9.
Week 14: at Green Bay Packers
The Falcons would travel to Green Bay for a game against the Packers. The Falcons had a lot of chances to try and get the lead in the fourth quarter, but the Packers would ultimately hold a 22-21 lead for the final 12:01 as the Falcons failed to score in the fourth quarter. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 3-10.
Week 15: vs. Washington Redskins
The Falcons would go home for a battle against 3-10 Washington. The Falcons would win the game 27-26. The Redskins would go down to score with 18 seconds remaining, but mainly since they were 3-10, they tried to go for 2 and give them the lead and ultimately the win. However, the attempt was no good and the Falcons held on. With the win, the Falcons improved to 4-10.
Week 16: at San Francisco 49ers
The Falcons would travel to San Francisco for a Monday Night game against the 49ers. The Falcons had a shot at getting the lead in the 4th quarter, but NaVorro Bowman would return an interception 89 yards for a touchdown to put the game away. With the loss, the Falcons fell to 4-11. The loss also allowed the 49ers to clinch a playoff berth.
Week 17: vs. Carolina Panthers
With the loss, the Falcons finished their season 4-12 being swept by the Panthers for the first time since 1997.