Chris Chandler (American football)
The resilient journeyman quarterback who engineered the Atlanta Falcons' stunning Cinderella run to their first Super Bowl appearance.
Born 1965 (age 61)·American football player·Birthday: October 12·Generation X
Biography
Chris Chandler's NFL career reads like a map of the league itself, a 17-season odyssey across eight cities and seven different teams. Labeled a talented but injury-prone prospect early on, he earned the unfortunate nickname "Crystal Chandelier." His story, however, is one of persistence finding its perfect moment. That moment arrived in Atlanta in 1998. At 33, with his savvy and a powerful offense built around him, Chandler stayed healthy and played the best football of his life. He led the Falcons to a franchise-best 14-2 record and a dramatic NFC Championship victory, catapulting the long-suffering team into Super Bowl XXXIII. While they fell to the Broncos, Chandler's season remains a testament to the value of a veteran quarterback who finally puts all the pieces together.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Chris was born in 1965, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Chris Was Born
The biggest hits of 1965
#1 Movie
The Sound of Music
Best Picture
The Sound of Music
#1 TV Show
Bonanza
Chris's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1965Born
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
1970Started school
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1978Became a teenager
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1981Could drive
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1983Could vote
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1986Turned 21
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1995Turned 30
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
2005Turned 40
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2015Turned 50
Paris climate agreement; same-sex marriage legalized in the US
Gas: $2.43/galHome: $171,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Uptown Funk" — Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsBest Picture: Spotlight
2025Turned 60
AI agents go mainstream
Gas: $3.10/galHome: $385,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"APT." — Rose & Bruno Mars
2026Age 61 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Quarterbacked the Atlanta Falcons to a 14-2 regular season record and an appearance in Super Bowl XXXIII in the 1998 season.
- Was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1998 following his career-best season with the Falcons.
- Played for 17 seasons in the NFL, a notably long career for a quarterback of his era.
- Passed for over 28,000 yards and 170 touchdowns across his tenure with seven different teams.
Did You Know?
He was the starting quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars in their very first regular season game in 1995.
Chandler played his college football at the University of Washington.
He is one of only a handful of quarterbacks to have started for both the Atlanta Falcons and the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans franchise.
In the 1998 NFC Championship game, he threw the game-winning touchdown pass to Terance Mathis to send the Falcons to the Super Bowl.
“You just keep showing up, keep competing, and eventually you find your place.”
