What was the greatest single season by a Falcons quarterback?

I look at the NFL offseason as having two separate dead periods — the first one comes between the end of your team’s season (so the end of the regular season for the Falcons for the past two years) and the start of the free agency period. The second one is between the draft and the start of Training Camp.

In these periods of no football, we pass the time by looking back on our team’s history (preferably the good moments).

Today, we’ll look back on the greatest quarterback seasons in Falcons history, and you will have a chance to vote for the best one.

Steve Bartkowski - 1980

225-463 (55.5% completion), 3544 passing yards, 31 passing touchdowns, 16 interceptions, 88.2 passer rating, Pro Bowl, 12-4 record

The first truly great quarterback season in Falcons history was achieved by franchise legend Steve Bartkowski in what was the greatest Falcons season up to that point, and it remained that way up until the Super Bowl run in 1998.

Bartkowski finished fifth in the NFL in passing yards, tied for first in game-winning drives, and led the league in passing touchdowns. He had the Birds in first place and poised for a Super Bowl run until that heartbreaking defeat against the Cowboys in the Divisional Round. Bartkowski also finished fourth in NFL MVP voting for his efforts.

Steve Bartkowski - 1981

297-533 (55.7% completion), 3829 passing yards, 30 passing touchdowns, 23 interceptions, 79.2 passer rating, Pro Bowl, 7-9 record

Bartkowski followed up his stellar 1980 season with another strong campaign in 1981, in which he set Atlanta’s franchise record for passing yards in a single season (surpassing his own mark from a year earlier). That record would stand until 1995.

Bartkowski finished fourth in the NFL in passing yards, and second in the league in passing touchdowns. He had more yards and more TDs than NFL MVP Ken Anderson that season.

Jeff George - 1995

336-557 (60.3% completion), 4143 passing yards, 24 passing touchdowns, 11 interceptions, 89.5 passer rating, 9-7 record

A fun trivia nugget is that Jeff George is the first player in franchise history to throw for 4000+ passing yards, and that he has more single season passing yards than any Falcon not named Matt Ryan.

George was a gunslinger who had statistical success in the 1995 season, finishing fourth in the NFL in passing yards and eighth in passing touchdowns. He led the Falcons to just their second playoff berth since 1982.

Chris Chandler - 1998

190-327 (58.1% completion), 3154 passing yards, 25 passing touchdowns, 12 interceptions, 100.9 passer rating, Pro Bowl, 13-1 record

The 1998 team was running back Jamal Anderson’s show, but Chris Chandler certainly did his part in making the team nearly unbeatable. Chandler finished second in TD percentage, sixth in passing touchdowns, fourth in passer rating, and tied for first in QB win percentage.

Chandler helped lead the team to its first ever Super Bowl appearance, pulling off one of the great upsets in NFL playoff history against the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship Game. He became the first Falcon to achieve a single season passer rating of triple digits, and his ‘98 passer rating stood as the franchise record until 2012.

Michael Vick - 2002

231-421 (54.9% completion), 2936 passing yards, 16 passing touchdowns, 8 interceptions, 81.6 passer rating, 777 rushing yards, 8 rushing touchdowns, 9 fumbles, Pro Bowl, 8-6-1 record

After playing sporadically in his rookie season of 2001, Vick started to change the game in his sophomore campaign a year later. The passing numbers won’t pop out at you, but the 777 rushing yards and additional eight rushing scores (both the most by a QB that season) made him a nightmare to defend.

Vick led the Falcons to a Wildcard berth and became the first QB to ever win a road playoff game at Lambeau Field in what has gone down as his legendary moment. He was a Pro Bowl selection already in his second season and he finished tied for fourth in MVP voting.

Michael Vick - 2004

181-321 (56.8% completion), 2313 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, 12 interceptions, 78.1 passer rating, 902 rushing yards, 3 rushing touchdowns, 16 fumbles, Pro Bowl, 11-4 record

How does a passing season of less than 2500 yards, with a TD/INT ratio which is nearly equal, and a passer rating below 80 end up on this list? When you take into account that the QB putting up those passing numbers added rushing yardage which would rival a running back. Unfortunately, the flip side to that coin is that he also had the most fumbles in the league.

Vick led the league in rushing yards per attempt with a stellar 7.5 this season, and led the Falcons to just their third division title (and first NFC South title) in franchise history. He helped lead the Falcons to just their second conference championship berth in franchise history as well. Vick also finished second in MVP voting, and was the reason why Peyton Manning wasn’t a unanimous selection for the award.

Matt Ryan - 2010

357-571 (62.5% completion), 3705 passing yards, 28 passing touchdowns, 9 interceptions, 91.0 passer rating, Pro Bowl, 13-3 record

Going into his third year in the NFL after being selected with the third overall selection in the 2008 NFL draft, Matt Ryan was under pressure to take that next step in his career as Atlanta’s quarterback. He most certainly delivered.

As just a 25-year-old, Ryan threw for more single season TDs in franchise history than anyone not named Steve Bartkowski, and he set the Falcons’ single season record for both 4th quarter comebacks and game-winning drives (leading the league in both categories as well). Ryan led the Falcons to their best regular season mark since 1998, and to their first division title since 2004.

Matt Ryan - 2012

422-615 (68.6% completion), 4719 passing yards, 32 passing touchdowns, 14 interceptions, 99.1 passer rating, Pro Bowl, 13-3 record

Getting gradually better in every year of his career, Ryan had a breakout season in 2012 under the supervision of new offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter who opened up the passing attack.

Ryan reached heights never seen before by an Atlanta signal caller, shattering the franchise’s single season record for passing yards (breaking Jeff George’s 1995 mark by 576 yards), and breaking Bartkowski’s single season passing touchdown record which had stood for 32 years. Ryan finished first in the NFL in completion percentage, fifth in passing yards, fifth in passing touchdowns, and fifth in passer rating. He led the Falcons to the best record in the NFC and to a conference championship appearance.

Matt Ryan - 2016

373-534 (69.9% completion), 4944 passing yards, 38 passing touchdowns, 7 interceptions, 117.1 passer rating, Pro Bowl, AP First-Team All-Pro, Most Valuable Player, 11-5 record

For about a three-year stretch after the 2012 campaign, it seemed like Ryan’s peak season would always be that fifth year in the NFL. He shattered through the glass ceiling of 2012 with one of the most magical years imaginable in 2016.

Ryan finished second in the NFL in passing yardage, and second in passing touchdowns (first in TD% however) despite missing a few fourth quarters down the stretch of the campaign as a result of the Falcons resting starters in blowouts. He finished first in passer rating, eviscerating Chris Chandler’s franchise record which had stood for 18 years by 16.2 points. Ryan also broke the NFL record for yards per attempt (of QBs who had a minimum of at least 400 attempts) with a 9.3 mark.

Ryan became the first (and only) player in franchise history to win the MVP award, and was the first QB in franchise history to be named an AP First-Team All-Pro. He led the Falcons to the Super Bowl, going on the most memorable playoff run by any player in franchise history.

Matt Ryan - 2018

422-608 (69.4% completion), 4924 passing yards, 35 passing touchdowns, 7 interceptions, 108.1 passer rating, 7-9 record

Ryan’s 2018 season is maybe the most under-appreciated season by a quarterback in NFL history. With how bad his team was defensively, the Falcons weren’t winning much despite Ryan’s best efforts, and he wasn’t even named to the Pro Bowl as a result (which is still a travesty). At the same time, Patrick Mahomes’ incredible year overshadowed all other QBs.

Ryan finished third in the league in passing yards, third in passing touchdowns, and fourth in passer rating. All of his marks in those categories would have broken the franchise’s single season records if not for his own 2016 campaign (they are all second to his numbers in 2016).