Atlanta Falcons 2016 NFC Football Championship Ring

Atlanta Falcons 2016 NFC Football Championship Ring

The 2016 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise's 51st season in the National Football League and the second under head coach Dan Quinn in which they blew a 28-3 lead in the Super Bowl. It also marked the team's 25th and final season playing their home games at the Georgia Dome, as the Falcons will move into the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium in 2017. The Falcons won the NFC South for the first time since 2012 and improved on their 8–8 record from 2015, going 11–5 and earning the second seed in the NFC playoffs.

The Falcons defeated the Seattle Seahawks 36–20 in the Divisional Round to advance to the NFC Championship Game for the first time since 2012. In the NFCCG, they defeated the Green Bay Packers, 44–21, to reach Super Bowl LI, where they faced the New England Patriots. The game marked the Falcons' second Super Bowl appearance; they had competed in Super Bowl XXXIII 18 years earlier. Reaching overtime for the first time in Super Bowl history, the Falcons lost 28–34, after leading 28–3 midway through the third quarter. Although it ended in defeat, the 2016 Falcons season was one of the most successful in team history, being only their second Super Bowl appearance since the conception of the franchise and quarterback Matt Ryan becoming the 2016 NFL MVP.