The Atlanta Falcons needed this win. They had to have this win. A victory propelled them to the top of the NFC South and kept their playoff hopes alive after a 4-6 start and plenty of ugliness, while a loss more or less doomed their hopes for the year. In a sloppy one marred by turnovers by both teams and some late down misses, the Falcons got that victory they needed, and by a comfortable nine points. With Bijan Robinson scoring two touchdowns, the defense holding New Orleans to nothing but field goals, and an absolutely massive Jessie Bates pick-six, the Falcons finally set this thing right. Now they’re in first place in the NFC South again, very much alive, and suddenly full of the post-bye promise we hoped they could show us. There’s so much to work on and we’ll talk about this week, but you shouldn’t dwell on that right now, not with a win over the hated Saints in the books and the Falcons back in first. Enjoy a win we really wanted to see and we’ll see where the rest of the season takes us. Here’s a drive-by-drive recap of the game you just watched.
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1st Quarter
New Orleans had the ball first, and after a touchback, Alvin Kamara’s first carry lost two yards thanks to a sharp tackle from Kaden Elliss. Kamara then picked up five yards on second down, and then a short pass to Chris Olave was stopped cold by Jessie Bates. Punt, and Dee Alford returned it about ten yards. Desmond Ridder’s first pass went to Bijan Robinson, who couldn’t corral it. On second down, Robinson got about five yards on the ground. Ridder’s third down throw to Drake London was a little behind him and London didn’t stop in time, and thus incomplete. Punt. On first down, Derek Carr had plenty of time and hit a leaping Chris Olave downfield for a huge gain. Taysom Hill then took it for about five yards on first down, and then Carr hit Rashid Shaheed for a first down. Kamara then got brought down by Elliss for a loss. Carr then hit Olave for about six yards, and then a toss play to Kamara went for about six yards and a first down. Three yards on first down for Jamaal Williams followed, and then a pass to Williams was in the dirt and popped out. On third down, Carr kind of threw it away, setting up a field goal try. The Saints inevitably hit the 25 yard try. 3-0 Saints.
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2nd Quarter
Ridder hit London over the middle again for about 15 yards and a first down over the middle. Tyler Allgeier maybe got a yard on first down, and then Ridder didn’t see anything and ran for about 15 yards to pick up the first down. A swing pass to Robinson went a yard or two, and then Patterson went nowhere on second down. Kyle Pitts then caught the Ridder pass for a first down. A quick toss to Robinson picked up three yards on first down, and then Ridder kept it again and ran for about 15 more yards and another first down. A quick swing to Scotty Miller got about four yards, and then Bijan Robinson took the carry to the house on a well-blocked run for a touchdown. 14-6 Falcons.
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3rd Quarter
A quick handoff to Patterson kicked things off for the Falcons, and he got about a yard before being picked up and suplexed with no call. Fortunately, Ridder then hit Kyle Pitts over the middle for a first down, with Pitts holding on through contact. Robinson then took it and got the edge, rumbling for a first down and another five yards before he was tripped up and fell on what otherwise might have been a touchdown. Allgeier then picked up about four yards on first down, and then a Ridder keeper on an option play went absolutely nowhere and lost three yards. The pass was then tipped and Atlanta had to punt. Jamaal Williams took the first carry for a couple of yards on first down, and then Kamara picked up…