The Atlanta Falcons have had many ups and downs over the years.  With a seventeen-year career playing in the ATL, Mike Kenn has seen it all.

Mike Kenn holds the Falcons record for the most games played and started.  He patrolled the Offensive Line, primarily from the Left Tackle position during his time there and netted himself five consecutive Pro Bowl appearances and a pair of All-Pro Selections.  Arguably best as a run-blocker, Kenn's immense height (6' 7") gave him superior field vision, yet astoundingly did not impact his center of gravity (at least visually), and he was rarely bested.  Starting all 251 Games with the Falcons, Kenn might be the most durable player in franchise history and can stake a claim as the greatest lineman Atlanta ever saw.  He may never reach Canton, but the Falcons retired his number.

As the second draft pick of 1969, George Kunz had the fortune of playing for Notre Dame (when that mattered) and winning a National Championship there.  He didn’t have the same luck when the Atlanta Falcons selected him.

This isn’t to say that it was all bad, but the Falcons could only reach average status at best during the 1970s.  This was no fault of Kunz, who earned five Pro Bowl selections during his tenure in Atlanta.  It got better for Kunz as he was traded to a better Baltimore Colts team, and he received a First Team All-Pro selection and three more Pro Bowls.

George Kunz was one of the better Right Tackles of his era, and had he made it to the All-Decade Team, he might have received some serious Hall consideration.

A member of the 100 Sack club (133.5 exactly), John Abraham was a pounding Defensive End who terrorized Quarterbacks for years. He exceeded ten sacks eight times in a season and was a popular figure during his time with the New York Jets and the Atlanta Falcons. A very intriguing candidate, Abraham is, as of this writing, in the top ten all-time in Forced Fumbles and Tackles for Loss and the top fifteen in Quarterback Sacks.  He would go to five Pro Bowls and was twice a First Team All-Pro, and that first step he took off the snap remains in the nightmares of offensive linemen.

One of the most prolific tacklers in the history of the Atlanta Falcons, Keith Brooking, was drafted from Georgia Tech 12^th overall in 1998.  While he was not an immediate starter, he found a home in Atlanta’s Nickel Defense and was a part of their run to Super Bowl XXXIII.  

After becoming a regular starter, Brooking had few equals as a run stuffer, and he had a nine-season run in which he averaged over 100 combined tackles; in 2003, he led the National Football League in Solo Tackles with 123.  Brooking was named to five straight Pro Bowls (2001-05), and as of this writing, is in the top 25 all-time in Solo Tackles and Combined Tackles.