5 Falcons chosen for ESPN’s All-Quarter-Century team

Do you agree with their choices? Who’s missing?

Twenty-five years. It’s been 25 years since the new millennium started, and the game of football has transitioned into a completely new era than when the 2000 Baltimore Ravens held 75% of their regular season opponents to 14 points or less.

Offenses have never been more dominant than in the past quarter century, and one of the teams that found unprecedented success because of their offensive output was the Atlanta Falcons. Atlanta was top-10 in points scored seven times (2002, 2008, 2010-2012, 2016, 2018), matching their mark of seven times before the year 2000. Six out of those seven times, they made the playoffs and, for the first time in franchise history, went to the playoffs in back-to-back years.

One of the key components of that success was the health of the passing game. From 2000, the Falcons ranked 10th in the NFL in EPA/dropback and dropback success rate, according to rbsdm.com. While that is impressive, the real game-changing move occurred in 2008, when the franchise acquired Matt Ryan. During Ryan’s tenure as a Falcon (2008-2022), he led the Falcons to the fifth-best EPA/play, seventh-best success rate, fifth-best EPA/dropback, and fourth-best dropback success rate.

But Ryan couldn’t do it on his own. He needed guys who could get open and do something with the football once it was in their hands. While guys like Roddy White, Harry Douglas, and Calvin Ridley were all key components to the passing game, two pass-catchers in particular made sure that Ryan’s transition to the NFL was a successful one, and both of them were recognized in ESPN’s Aaron Schatz and Seth Walder’s All Quarter Century Team. There was also a third, controversial Falcon named in this article that contributed a good bit to Atlanta’s passing success.

On defense/special teams, two Falcons that made quick, yet impactful, cameos for the team were recognized, as well.

Julio Jones

Accomplishments: 13,703 total receiving yards (16th All-Time), 136 receptions in 2015 (T-4th most in a single season), 1,871 yards in 2015 (Third-most in a single season), 82.5 yards/game (Fifth-most All-Time), 66 receiving TDs, five-time All-Pro

If we look at every player’s three best seasons by receiving yards this quarter century, no wideout’s top three years matched Jones’ total of 5,141 — four yards ahead of Johnson. If we do the same exercise for each player’s five best seasons, Jones again sits at the top. Best seven? Still Jones.

Also, with all due respect to Matt Ryan, Jones did not have a Hall of Fame quarterback throwing to him the way other receivers on this list did. Though he never won a ring, Jones’ miraculous sideline grab in Super Bowl LI helped the Falcons get awfully close to one.

Once Thomas Dimitroff made that fateful draft-day trade to acquire Julio Jones in 2011, the stage was set for the Falcons to compete, not just for playoff spots, but for championships. Jones’ run from 2014-2019 was a run of consistency that you simply don’t see. Five straight years of 1400+ receiving yards, and missing the sixth by only six yards in 2019. And though Jones was never able to hoist the Lombardi like he deserved to, there is no doubt that he will be donning a gold jacket in five years, after officially calling it a career on April 4th this year.

The other pass-catcher on this list already has his gold jacket and continues to be the standard at the tight end position.

Tony Gonzalez

Accomplishments: 1,325 receptions (3rd All-Time, 1st among TEs), 15,127 receiving yards (6th All-Time, 1st Among TEs), 111 receiving TDs (8th All-Time, 2nd among TEs), nine-time All-Pro

Gonzalez was great year after year after year in a career that seemingly went on forever. He led all tight ends in receiving DYAR seven different times and ranked in the top five in 12 out of the 14 seasons we’re considering for this exercise. His career total in receptions (1,325) is still an all-time high for tight ends and ranks third highest of any player all time.

Before boldly trading up in the 2011 draft for Jones, Dimitroff traded a 2010 second-round pick to secure the services of then-33-year-old tight end Tony Gonzalez. Gonzalez gave a young Ryan the big-bodied target necessary to take the passing game to the next level. Over his time as a Falcon, Gonzalez was the face of consistency, achieving a receiving success rate of 60% or above in his final three seasons. Combined with Jones in his second year, the 2012 Falcons hit 300+ passing yards in six games that season, and gave Gonzalez his sixth, and final, first-team All-Pro nod.

The next Falcon on this list will bring up some mixed feelings, but given his impact on the franchise’s success, not to mention the game in general, there’s no doubt that he deserves the recognition.

Kyle Shanahan

Accomplishments: Offensive Coordinator/Head Coach for six top-ten offenses, including four top-five offenses. Helped lead ten teams to top-ten passing offenses in Net Yards per Attempt, including nine top-five offenses.

Our criteria for the coordinators was that head coaches were allowed as long as they spent some time as a coordinator in this quarter century. Shanahan — along with Sean McVay and the resulting coaching tree — proliferated a schematic shift across the league that happened to be quite successful.

Teams coordinated or coached by Shanahan averaged 0.06 EPA per play (postseason included), including three seasons where they ranked top two in DVOA and six seasons in the top six. Shanahan’s statistical success is notable given that he usually hasn’t had elite quarterbacks playing for him — the quarterback with the most playing time under him is Jimmy Garoppolo.

While Shanahan may be a polarizing figure in most Falcons circles, what he did for the Falcons in his two years in Atlanta can’t be ignored. He helped lead Ryan to an incredible, MVP season in 2016, and got the most out of an offense filled with talent. While Super Bowl LI will always be a horrid stain on his resume, the season that preceded was nothing short of magical.

The 2016 Falcons offense ranked:

• 1st in Points Scored
• 2nd in Total Yards
• 3rd in Passing Yards
• 2nd in Passing TDs
• 1st in Net Yards/Attempt
• 5th in Rushing Yards
• 3rd in Rushing TDs
• 5th in Rushing Yards/Attempt
• 1st in Yards/Drive
• 1st in Points/Drive
• 1st in EPA/play
• 1st in Success Rate
• 1st in EPA/Dropback
• 1st in Dropback Success Rate
• 3rd in EPA/Rush and
• 6th in Rushing Success Rate

Calais Campbell

Accomplishments: 917 combined tackles (651 solo), 187 tackles for loss (3rd All-Time), 110.5 sacks, 3 safeties forced (T-5th All Time), 18 forced fumbles, three-time All-Pro

Though Campbell has had the benefit of a 17-year (and counting!) career, his numbers are truly quite remarkable. He’s only one sack shy of passing Donald’s career total, while his total plus-EPA ranks fourth among all players and first among interior defenders. Campbell has moved around a lot over his career, but he’d play the 3-technique for this team (that’s the position he has played the most since NFL Next Gen Stats tracking data started in 2017).

Over the last quarter century, there hasn’t been much to celebrate for the Falcons as far as defense is concerned (Atlanta ranks 30th in both EPA/play and defensive success rate since 2000). However, one of the few signings in the past few years that has worked out was the signing of then-37-year-old Calais Campbell. Campbell helped lead the Falcons to the top rushing defense in terms of EPA/rush and tied the team lead for sacks with 6.5.

While the 2023 Falcons didn’t give fans much to cheer about, Campbell and the completion of his quest to 100 sacks on his career was a moment we all could cheer for.

Devin Hester

Accomplishments: 5 kick return TDs (T-9th All Time), 14 punt return TDs (1st All Time), 7,333 kick return yards (12th All Time), 3,695 punt return yards (3rd All Time), four-time All-Pro

Though Hester is remembered for scoring on the opening kickoff in Super Bowl XLI, he was actually more prolific as a punt returner. Fourteen of his return touchdowns came off punts; no other player recorded more than four in that same span. In 2024, he became the first return specialist to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Devin Hester may be one of the few players in NFL history that can be called a return specialist and it be treated as a compliment. Hester remains the standard for punt returns, and showed his versatility by taking five kick returns to the house as well over his 11-year career.

As a Falcon, Hester also showcased his hands, hauling in 38 receptions for 504 yards, but that’s not why we’re here. In 2014, his last full season of playing, he showcased that he was one of the baddest to ever run under a football with a scintillating 62-yard punt return touchdown to break Deion Sanders’ punt-return touchdown record.