After coming off a much-needed bye week, the Atlanta Falcons were sitting at 3-4 and looking to leave FedEx Field at .500 on Sunday. They accomplished that goal.
With dominant performances in all phases of the game, Atlanta made a statement with a 38-14 rout of the NFC East-leading Washington Redskins.
Here’s how they did it:
The Defense Stifled Adrian Peterson
When the 33-year-old running back took a handoff from quarterback Alex Smith, Atlanta’s defense swarmed.
Peterson went from rushing 29 times for 149 yards last week to a mere nine rushes for 17 yards against the Falcons.
In a postgame interview, he gave credit to Atlanta’s defense for their ability to slow down Washington’s run game.
Adrian Peterson – gotta take our hats off to Atlanta. They did a great job today. pic.twitter.com/RbRsZzbzSq
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) November 4, 2018
More Touchdowns, Less Field Goals
The Falcons have struggled with getting into the end zone on long drives, often settling for three points. That wasn’t the case on Sunday.
Quarterback Matt Ryan used not one, not two, not three but four of his offensive weapons on Atlanta’s five touchdown drives:
- Tevin Coleman, 39-yard touchdown
- Ito Smith, 12-yard touchdown
- Calvin Ridley, 40-yard touchdown
- Tevin Coleman, 10-yard touchdown
Atlanta’s final touchdown of the afternoon was one that fans and fantasy football owners had been waiting for all season. And it did not disappoint.
Atlanta’s Twitter team had a little fun with the fans after receiving countless tweets throughout the season about Julio Jones not having any touchdowns.
Julio Jones fantasy football owners, you may now exit our mentions. pic.twitter.com/tl5evgTsvv
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) November 4, 2018
Ryan was in MVP Form
He may have thrown an interception early in the game, but it didn’t matter. Ryan looked every bit like an MVP, throwing for 350 yards and four touchdowns.
It was the fifth game this season that he’s thrown for 350 or more yards. He appears to be on par for another banner year.
To put things into perspective on how well Ryan’s played so far:
The Falcons have now played 8 games this season. If Matt Ryan reproduces his stat line from the first half of the season over the second half, he'll finish with these numbers:
426/602, 5,370 yards, 38 TDs, 6 INT, 115.1 passer rating.
He's having another remarkable, MVP season.
— Football Perspective (@fbgchase) November 5, 2018
Head coach Dan Quinn had nothing but positive things to say about his quarterback after the game.
“I think one of the things I really admire about him is consistency. It’s not a sexy word because it’s not earned overnight…He is playing consistently. But even past that, decision making, the accuracy, the toughness he displays makes teammates,” Quinn told the AJC.
“That’s what I think of Matt. All the work that he puts in to make sure that he’s at his best for his team and it shows up every week.”