Falcons 101: Eagles series history

This Sunday marks the 33rd matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles and the 17th game played in Philadelphia. These teams have been playing each other since September 18, 1966 and they have just about split the series. Let’s dive a little deeper into the history between these two classic franchises.

Series records and winning streaks

Of the 32 games played between the Eagles and the Falcons, the series is split 18-14 in favor or Philadelphia, over half of the Eagles’ wins have come at home, where they own a 10-6 record against the Falcons. Consequently, the Falcons have won 14 games in this series: six in Philadelphia and eight in Atlanta.

The last seven matchups between these two teams make up the longest winning streaks for both teams. Atlanta has won the last three games in this series, matching their longest winning streak in this series. Before that, though, the Eagles won four in a row against Atlanta—that is their longest winning streak in the series.

Matt Ryan vs. Eagles

Matt Ryan, who arrived in 2008, has a .3-2 record against the Eagles, though the Falcons record since 2008 is 3-3—the loss in 2009 occurred while Ryan was recovering from injury. One of those wins came last year to open the season against Chip Kelly’s Eagles, and the other two came in 2011 and 2012. Ryan is 1-1 at Lincoln Financial Field with the loss coming in 2010.

Over the five games against the Eagles, Ryan has completed 61 percent of his passes and has thrown 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions, and while both of those stats are serviceable, they are not up to the standard Ryan has set this season so he will look to improve those numbers this week.

Biggest win and biggest loss

Atlanta’s biggest wins and losses in this series came very early on in the 33 games. In fact, they both came within the first three games in the series. Atlanta’s biggest loss was the second game in the entire series: the Eagles beat the Falcons 38-7 on Oct. 8, 1967, a margin of 31 points.

The Falcons biggest win occurred just two years after the biggest loss on Dec. 14, 1969 when they beat the Eagles 27-3.

Series quick-hitters

• Dan Quinn is 1-0 against the Eagles as a head coach, so this will be his first trip to Philadelphia.
• Sunday will be the first time Carson Wentz and Doug Pederson play and coach against Atlanta, respectively.
• The Eagles have allowed three or more sacks in each of their losses this season, while they have allowed only two or less in each of their wins this year.

The Falcons and Eagles play their 33rd game this Sunday at 1:00 p.m. EST at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pa. You can catch the game on FOX or listen to it on 92.9 The Game in Atlanta, and check back here for our game thread.

All stats and data are from pro-football-reference.com unless otherwise noted.