Eagles–Falcons rivalry
The Eagles–Falcons rivalry is a National Football League (NFL) rivalry between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Atlanta Falcons. The rivalry first emerged when the Falcons rallied in the fourth quarter against the Eagles in the , and only intensified further in the 2000s with the emergence of star dual-threat quarterbacks in Donovan McNabb and Michael Vick. History. As of 2021, the Eagles lead the all-time series 21–15–1, and have a 3–1 playoff record. The Eagles were the Falcons' second-ever opponent in the latter's inaugural 1966 season. In that game, Philadelphia won 23–10 as  Atlanta went on to finish their first season at 3–11. It was not until 1978, however, that the rivalry truly took off. 1978 Wild Card Round. The Falcons finished the 1978 season 9–7, earning their first-ever playoff berth. Their reward was a home playoff game against the Eagles in the Wild Card Round. The Falcons initially trailed 13–0, but rallied to win 14–13. The turning point of the game came when Falcons quarterback Steve Bartkowski launched a deep pass to wide receiver Wallace Francis, who simultaneously caught the ball with Eagles defender Herm Edwards. Under NFL rules, Atlanta maintained  possession following the simultaneous catch, gaining 49 yards in the process. Bartkowski later connected with tight end Jim Mitchell for a 20-yard touchdown, followed by a 37-yard touchdown pass to Francis late in the fourth quarter. Falcons kicker Tim Mazzetti scored the extra point to give Atlanta the lead. Philadelphia punter Mike Michel, who was thrust into kicking duties after a late-season injury to placekicker Nick Mike-Mayer, missed a potential game-winning 34-yard field goal, and was cut soon after.. 2000s: Donovan McNabb vs. Michael Vick. Both the Eagles and Falcons would meet almost frequently  over the next several years, but in the early 2000s, the rivalry was reignited with the arrival of Donovan McNabb and Michael Vick. The two mobile quarterbacks met for the first time in the . However, the game failed to live up to the billing, as the Eagles defense sacked Vick (274 passing yards, 30 rushing yards) three times and forced two interceptions, including a 39-yard touchdown return by Bobby Taylor. Meanwhile, McNabb finished with 247 passing yards, 24 rushing yards and a touchdown as Philadelphia won 20–6. McNabb and Vick would meet once more in the , but the result  again favored the Eagles in a 27–10 blowout victory. While McNabb had 180 passing yards, 32 rushing yards and two touchdowns (both were thrown to tight end Chad Lewis), Vick only managed 136 passing yards and 26 rushing yards. Vick was also sacked four times and intercepted twice. McNabb had defeated Vick in each of their first two meetings, but in Week 1 of the 2005 season, Vick finally bested McNabb in a meaningful contest. In the Monday Night Football opener (the series' final season with ABC until 2020), the Falcons defeated the Eagles 14–10, with Vick scoring the game 's first touchdown on a seven-yard run. Overall, the two quarterbacks faced each other in only three of a possible five times during their respective tenures with the Eagles and Falcons. In , Vick missed the Eagles–Falcons game due to a leg injury he suffered in the preseason; the Eagles won 23–16. Then in , McNabb did not play due to a serious knee injury in the Eagles' 24–17 win. Following a dog-fighting scandal and a 21-month prison sentence, Vick was released by the Falcons after the 2008 season. The Eagles eventually signed Vick prior to the 2009  season, and in his first game in Atlanta with the Eagles, Vick scored two touchdowns while serving as McNabb's backup in the Eagles' 34–7 rout. Vick eventually reclaimed the starting job during the 2010 season after McNabb was traded to the Washington Redskins. Recent years. After releasing Vick, the Falcons groomed Matt Ryan, a Philadelphia native, whom they chose with the third pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, as its new starter. In the 2011 season, Ryan and Vick faced each other for the first time as starting quarterbacks. Vick's second return in Atlanta did not go well , as he suffered a concussion and left the game. Ryan's four touchdowns helped the Falcons defeat the Eagles 35–31, his first career victory over Philadelphia. Ryan also defeated Vick in as the Falcons cruised to a 30–17 victory. It was also Atlanta's first win in Philadelphia since . The Eagles and Falcons would not meet again until the Kickoff of the 2015 NFL season under the Monday Night Football lights. A new look Eagles led by QB Sam Bradford and HC Chip Kelly against Matt Ryan and new Falcons HC Dan Quinn. Despite a 20–3 lead mounted by the  Falcons going into halftime, the Eagles came back and took the lead midway in the 4th Quarter with a Ryan Mathews rushing TD that gave the Eagles a narrow 24–23 lead however the Falcons drove down the field and regained the lead with a Matt Bryant field goal. The Falcons defense held the Eagles highlighted by a Ricardo Allen interception off of Sam Bradford to seal the 26–24 victory for the Falcons. This would eventually be the Eagles last visit to the Georgia Dome as the stadium was replaced by the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in 2017. The two teams would  meet again the following season with a high-flying Falcons offense led by Matt Ryan and Julio Jones with a 6–3 record against a Eagles team now lead by the rookie QB-HC tandem of 2016 2nd Overall Pick QB Carson Wentz and HC Doug Pederson going in with a 4–4 record. The Eagles shocked the Falcons holding them in check until the 4th quarter when Matt Ryan found WR Taylor Gabriel for a 76 yd TD pass to take a 15–13 Falcons lead (Matt Bryant missed the extra point after). However the Eagles answered with 11 unanswered points and  held on for a big 24–15 upset win over one of the NFL's top offenses. The Eagles and Falcons resumed their playoff rivalry in the . While Ryan had remained the Falcons' quarterback to that point, the Eagles were now led by Nick Foles, who originally replaced Vick in and later replaced Carson Wentz as the starter that season. The Falcons entered the contest as defending NFC champions, but the Eagles managed to win 15–10 after stopping the Falcons on a goal-line stand in the final minute. Foles passed for 246 yards, while Ryan ended up with 210 passing  yards and a touchdown. The game's key points were scored by Eagles kicker Jake Elliott, who scored three consecutive field goals after the Eagles trail 10–9 in the second quarter. A rematch took place to kickoff the 2018 season. Much like their playoff meeting the previous year, the Eagles defense stopped yet another potential Falcons' game-winning touchdown in an 18–12 victory. Eagles running back Jay Ajayi scored the game-winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter, and the Eagles broke up a potential Ryan touchdown pass to Julio Jones on the final play following an illegal contact on  fourth down gave the Falcons one additional play. The Eagles and Falcons met again in Week 1 the this time it was Matt Ryan with new head coach Arthur Smith (who replaced Dan Quinn after a 5 year run with the franchise) against a young rebuilding Eagles team led by 2nd year quarterback Jalen Hurts and new head coach Nick Sirianni. The Eagles dominated the game from start to finish en route to a 32–6 win over the Falcons. Game results. ! 1978 playoffs !style="| Falcons 14–13 ! Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium ! Tied 3–3–1 ! NFC Wild Card Round. Falcons' first playoff game . Only playoff game between the two teams to take place in Atlanta. ! 2002 playoffs !style="|Eagles 20–6 ! Veterans Stadium ! Eagles 11–10–1 ! NFC Divisional Round. First start in the series for Michael Vick. ! 2004 playoffs !style="|Eagles 27–10 ! Lincoln Financial Field ! Eagles 13–10–1 ! NFC Championship Game. Eagles lose Super Bowl XXXIX. ! 2017 playoffs ! style="|Eagles 15–10 ! Lincoln Financial Field ! Eagles 19–14–1 ! NFC Divisional Round. First of two meetings between Matt Ryan and Nick Foles in the rivalry. First postseason game in which a #1 seed is an underdog in the Divisional Round. Eagles win Super Bowl LII.