THE NFL 1996 : Steelers Rally to Leave Falcons Winless, 20-17

Almost. That has been the story of the Atlanta Falcons’ winless season, and the fans are starting to get restless.

For the second consecutive week, Atlanta came close to knocking off one of the best teams in the NFL, only to fall short in the fourth quarter.

Norm Johnson kicked a 20-yard field goal as time ran out Sunday, giving the Pittsburgh Steelers a 20-17 victory over the Falcons, sending Atlanta to its eighth consecutive loss.

A week ago, the Falcons lost, 32-28, to defending Super Bowl champion Dallas on the road when the Cowboys scored a touchdown with less than two minutes left.

“In playing quality teams like Dallas and Pittsburgh, we are fighting pretty hard and have had opportunities to win the game,” Falcon quarterback Bobby Hebert said. “We need to try and close the game and find a way to win.”

The Falcons are within one loss of their worst start ever. That came in 1966, their first year of existence, when they lost nine in a row.

“Our guys have played hard for eight straight weeks, but we’ve got to make some plays to win some games,” Atlanta Coach June Jones said. “It just comes down to making a play to win a game, whether it be on offense or defense.

“We’re fighting hard and hanging together, but we’ve just got to get that first win to get things rolling.”

The Steelers (6-2) trailed, 10-3, at halftime but scored touchdowns on their first two possessions of the second half on a 12-yard pass from Mike Tomczak to Andre Hastings and a one-yard run by Jerome Bettis.

Pittsburgh, however, needed to drive 66 yards for the winning field goal.

“With five minutes left in the game it was just good to see our offense respond,” Pittsburgh Coach Bill Cowher said. “We did not play great, but I’d rather play poorly and win than play well and lose.”

Bettis ran seven times for 32 yards in the winning drive, and finished with 126 yards in 26 carries. He has run for more than 100 yards six times this season.

Tomczak completed 11 of 12 passes for 111 yards in the second half and finished 22 for 27 for 214 yards.