2021 Atlanta Falcons season

The 2021 season was the Atlanta Falcons' 56th season in the National Football League (NFL), their fifth playing their home games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and their first under general manager Terry Fontenot and head coach Arthur Smith.

For the first time since 2010, wide receiver Julio Jones was not on the roster as he was traded to the Tennessee Titans on June 6, 2021. Jones departed Atlanta holding the most career receiving yards and receptions in Falcons franchise history.

Following their Week 12 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Falcons improved their 4–12 season from the previous year. However, the Falcons were eliminated from playoff contention for the fourth consecutive year following a Week 17 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

It was also their final season with quarterback Matt Ryan, as he was traded to the Indianapolis Colts for the following season.

Draft
Notes
 * The Falcons were awarded 3 compensatory picks in the 2021 NFL Draft.
 * The Falcons traded their second-round (35th overall) and sixth-round (219th overall) picks to the Denver Broncos in exchange for their second-round (40th overall) and fourth-round (114th overall) selections.
 * All of the Falcons selections in this draft made the 53-man roster at the start of the regular season.

Schedule
The Falcons 2021 schedule was announced on May 12. They opened the season at home against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Week 1: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The Falcons start their season off with a 26-point loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Week 5: vs. New York Jets
NFL London games

Week 9: at New Orleans Saints
Younghoe Koo kicked a game-winning field goal as time ran out, improving Atlanta to 4–4.

Week 18: vs. New Orleans Saints
Coming off with a 2-point win in Week 9, they host the Saints. They were defeated by 10 points and finish their season with a 7-10 record.