Atlanta Falcons 21-14 Jacksonville Jaguars: Christmas comes early for the Falcons
It moves Arthur Smiths' men into second in the NFC South standings and with the same record as the Vikings who hold the NFC #7 seed. The Falcons won't face a team as generous as the Jaguars again this season.
The Game
The Falcons made it thirteen games in a row without an opening drive touchdown as all they could muster on their opening possession was 22 yards before new punter Thomas Morstead got a slice of the action. The Jaguars started at their own 14 and had a similar opening drive; punting after gaining just 23 yards leaving Matt Ryan and his offense at the 19 yard line following a Cooke 44 yard punt. The Falcons were facing a three and out after a sack on Ryan left them with a 3rd and 13 but Mile Davis coverted with an 18 yard reception. It was a drive dominated by the Falcons running backs. Davis and Gallman made key contributions but it was Atlanta's talisman Cordarrelle Patterson who capped if off with a 7 yard rush after a brilliant edge sealing block by left tackle Jake Matthews. 7-0 Falcons.
The response from Jacksonville was looking promising as they ran the ball with running back James Robinson down the Falcons throats to start the second quarter. That was until Dante Fowler pressured Lawrence and forced him into a misplaced pass that was pick off by safety Duron Harmon at the Atlanta 1 yard line. There was a flag on the play so it is unclear if Lawrence thought it was on the Falcons and he had a free play. The penalty ended up being on Jacksonville for illegal formation so the Falcons declined and took over possession.
After Thomas Morstead's second punt of the afternoon, Falcons defensive tackle Anthony Rush forced a James Robinson fumble on their second play from scrimmage which Marlon Davidson recovered at the Jaguars 29. Rush has been a very solid player since becoming part of the Falcons defensive rotation. After a three and out, Younghoe Koo came onto the field and kicked a field goal to make the score 10-0 Falcons or so we thought. It was amateur hour for the Jaguars as they committed a penalty for leverage to give the Falcons a new set of downs. Cordarrelle Patterson doubled his touchdown tally for the day to extend the Falcons lead to 14-0.
Dean Pees defence gave an expert example of bending but not breaking as they allowed 70 yards that only resulted in a field goal to narrow their lead to 14-3. The Jaguars had gotten to a goal to go situation but couldn't covert after impressive tackles by Darren Hall and Adetokunbo Ogundeji on Laviska Shenault and Lequon Treadwell respectively.
With 23 seconds left in the half, Matt Ryan forced a pass to Kyle Pitts which was intercepted by Jaguars rookie corner Tyson Campbell. Campbell was Jacksonville's best player on Sunday showing why they drafted him with the 33rd overall pick earlier this year. The Falcons defence came out on top again as they prevented Jacksonville from getting into field goal range before the end of the half.
The Falcons defence started the third quarter by forcing the Jaguars to punt for the second time in the game. Arthur Smith done an excellent job scheming his receivers open on this drive. The Falcons attempted to stay balanced by keeping the Jags defence honest with the threat of the run. Ryan eventually found Gage who got open out of a stack formation for a 12 yard touchdown. 21-3 Falcons.
Both teams exchanged three and outs before Trevor Lawrence would orchestrate the Jaguars most fruitful drive of the afternoon. Jags OC Darrell Bevell called a few read option plays which got Robinson and Lawrence yards on the ground; before a big gain in the air to tightend James O'Shaughnessy, filling in for Dan Arnold whom was injured earlier on in this encounter. Lawrence would find Tavon Austin open in the back of the endzone for his first touchdown since 2019 to make the score 21-9. The Jags opted to go for two and they converted it. Lawrence found that man James O'Shaughnessy again to narrow Atlanta's lead to ten. 21-11 Falcons.
The Falcons were beginning to show signs of their typical second half bottle job nature as they punted after taking less then two and a half minutes off the clock. Lawrence was getting into his groove. Former Falcon Lequon Treadwell and running back James Robinson were the key men on this field goal drive for Jacksonville that brought them within a touchdown of the Falcons. The key play being another penalty on Urban Meyers men which moved them from 1st and goal from the Falcons 6 yard line to 1st and goal from the 16. They couldn't convert and had to settle for a field goal. 21-14 Falcons.
This is how the score would stay despite Atlanta's offenses inability to score any more points. The Jaguars would get the ball back but they turned it over on downs after four consecutive incomplete passes by Trevor Lawrence at midfield. With one minute and nineteen seconds left, Matt Ryan came on and kneeled out the rest of the game.
Falcons Offensive Star
Running Back: Cordarrelle Patterson: Patterson has been so effective at scoring touchdowns since signing last offseason that he has been given the nickname "Scoredarrelle Patterson" by the Falcons supporters. He returned to the line up and rushed for two scores to end a run of twenty three offensive drives without a point for Atlanta. He was also the first Falcons player to rush for 100 yard since Todd Gurley did in week 8 of 2020.
Falcons Defensive Star
Edge Rusher: Dante Fowler: Fowler looked at his best against his former employers. He pressured Trevor Lawrence into an ill advised throw to create Duron Harmon's interception. Fowler led the Falcons with five pressures including a strip sack of Lawrence. AJ Terrell was a close second allowing just one catch for five yards earning him a 81.0 PFF coverage grade.
Falcons Positives
The Run Game: The Falcons have the 30th ranked rushing offense but they were able to get the ground game going against a weak Jacksonville front. Matt Hennessey had a below par game which resulted in him losing snaps to rookie Drew Dalman. The offensive line as a whole had a good performance though allowing just one pressure. Linebacker Mykal Walker looked to be an improvement on the underperforming overpaid Deion Jones whom missed out due to injury. Walker had nine tackles and four pressures.
Falcons Negatives
Wide Receivers: It seems like a weekly complaint but it'll keep being valid until we have someone who can get open against man coverage. Arthur Smith done a great job of scheming his guys open. Other then Cordarrelle Patterson and Kyle Pitts, the Falcons can improve at every pass catching position next season. If they get Calvin Ridley back, they should still be in the market for 2-3 new wide receivers.
What Arthur Smith Had To Say
Falcons head coach said it was their plan to rotate centers Matt Hennessey and Drew Dalman two drives on and two drives off. He also confirmed that they plan to continue giving both players snaps next week at home to Tampa Bay. He praised the returning Cordarrelle Patterson by saying "he adds another element" to the Falcons offense. Smith also praised new punter Thomas Morstead for "having a huge impact on the game".
Box Score
Atlanta Falcons
Passing: Matt Ryan 19/29, 190 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception, 81.1 passer rating.
Rushing: Cordarrelle Patterson 16 carries for 106 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Receiving: Russell Gage 6 receptions for 62 yards and 1 touchdown.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Passing: Trevor Lawrence 23/42, 228 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception, 68.3 passer rating.
Rushing: James Robinson 17 carries for 86 yards.
Receiving: Lequon Treadwell 4 receptions for 54 yards.
Highlights
The highlights are available here
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