Eastern Conference, playing a "swing schedule", consisting of playing every other team once, in order to make up for the disparity of an odd number of teams. Their first game (preseason) was on August 1, 1966 against the Philadelphia Eagles before a crowd of 26,072 at the Atlanta Stadium. The Falcons would lose against the Eagles and would lose their first nine games in the regular season before finally getting their first franchise win on the road against the New York Giants, 27–16. Former Giant Ernie Wheelwright scored two touchdowns receiving and ran for 51 more yards as QB Randy Johnson hit for a trio of TD's. Their first ever home victory was against the St. Louis Cardinals, 16–10 to a crowd of 57,169. The Falcons ended their inaugural season at 3-11, yet Nobis won the NFL Rookie of the Year Award and became the first Falcon named to the Pro Bowl. The 1967 season was no better as the Falcons exited their second season with only 1 win and a 1–12–1 season. After a dreadful 0–3 start in the 1968 season, Norm Van Brocklin, formerly head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, was named to replace Norb Hecker on October 1. Two weeks later, his Falcons beat New York 24–21, in the first meeting between Van Brocklin and his former QB, Fran Tarkenton. Despite the win, the Falcons would still finish with an abysmal 2–12 record. Although the first three seasons for the Falcons were dreadful, the Falcons turned things around in 1969. On September 21, the Falcons won their first season opener ever, beating the San Francisco 49ers, 24–12, before their home fans. Rookie tight end Jim Mitchell scored two TDs and the Falcons set a team record with 229 yards rushing. On December 7, Harmon Wages threw for a TD in the first quarter (16 yards to Paul Flatley), caught a pass for a TD in the second quarter (88 yards), and then ran for a TD in the fourth quarter (66 yards) in a 45–17 rout of the Saints. The Falcons finished the year with a vastly improved 6–8 record. 1970s The Falcons would have their first Monday Night Football game in Atlanta during the 1970 season on November 30, when they played the Miami Dolphins. The Falcons would end up losing 20–7 in front of an audience of 30 million TV viewers. The Falcons would end