In order for the Falcons to get back on track, they had to get back to what they do best and was controlling the clock on offense and make big plays on defense.
When the Falcons took on the Carolina Panthers on Sunday at the Georgia Dome, they did just that, as Michael Turner rushed for 139 yards and the defense forced three turnovers which led to a 31-17 victory.
“We did what we feel like is our DNA and that is control both sides of the line of scrimmage,” Falcons head coach Mike Smith said after the game. “We had some trouble in the first half getting off on third down. In the second half the final four drives of the ball ended in three-and-outs or interceptions.”
Smith was right about the Panthers getting off to a hot start. In the first quarter, the Panthers got on the board first with an Olindo Mare 42-yard field goal. That drive lasted 13 plays and took nearly seven minutes off the clock.
Falcons took the lead in their ensuing drive with a Michael Turner 1-yard touchdown run. Turner went over 100 yards for the 26th time in his career with the Falcons and is now tied for second on the all-time franchise record for most 100-yard rushing games.
“Guys don’t like tackling me all game,” Turner said. As long as I wear them out and the line keeps on jumping on them, we’ll be fine.”
At the start of the second quarter, the Panthers got back on the board thanks to a 9-play, 81-yard drive which ended with a Jonathan Stewart 1-yard touchdown run. A key play during that drive was when Cam Newton threw a 14 yard pass to Legedu Naanee on a third-and-13 play. At one point, the Panthers converted 8-of-9 third down plays and Smith said that is something they have to work on.
“We got to make sure we put sustainable pressure on the quarterback,” Smith said whose team produced two sacks which were in the second half. “In this league you’ve got to do that.”
Falcons took the lead again before halftime, as Matt Ryan threw a 1-yard pass to Ovie Mugelli to go up by four.
The third quarter has been a weakness for the Falcons and this game was no different. The Panthers put together a 13-play, 80-yard drive, which ended with a Newton 14-yard touchdown run to give them the 17-14 lead. The Falcons had only one possession in the third and could only produce one first down.
But in the fourth quarter, the Falcons were able to finish strong. In a drive that carried over in the third quarter, Matt Bryant tied the game with a 24-yard field goal. On their next series, the Falcons put together a 10-play, 60 yard drive that ended with a Ryan 1-yard touchdown run to give the Falcons the seven point lead. A key play during that series was when Ryan threw a 34-yard pass to Harry Douglas on a third-and-12 play. Douglas was starting in place of Julio Jones who suffered a hamstring injury last week and finished with four catches for 57 yards.
“As we say, one man’s misfortune is another man’s opportunity,” Smith said about Douglas. “We knew that Julio wasn’t going to able to play so somebody had to step up.”
The Panthers looked to put an equalizer on the board on the ensuing drive, but Newton threw his second interception of the game to Corey Peters and that led to another Turner touchdown run which iced the game for the Falcons. Newton threw his first pick in the second quarter to Brent Grimes in the end zone with less than a minute left, and his third pick came in on the last play of the game to Thomas DeCoud which was also in the end zone.
“We just made some plays,” Grimes said who led the team in interceptions last year. “[Newton] is a player that presents tons of problems for the defense. We just capitalized on the few mistakes that he made.”
With the win, the Falcons improved to 3-3, 1-1 in NFC South play. They will not have another home game for a month because they will be at Detroit next week, off the next and be back on the road the following week to face Indianapolis.
So to say this was a need win would be an understatement and the Falcons players and coaches feel the same way.
“Good win for our football team,” Ryan said who finish with a 101 quarterback rating. We showed pretty good resolve today and that’s what we’re going to need throughout the remainder of the season.”
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