ATLANTA -- A quick start got the Georgia Dome crowd on its feet, but a rapid rally by the Colts ended a chance at a holiday upset for the Falcons.
Indianapolis ended it's short week with a 31-13 win over Atlanta in the Thanksgiving Day nightcap, the second such game broadcast nationally by NFL Network in the past two years.
"This is a very tough loss because we have not gotten off to a good start the entire season," tight end Alge Crumpler said. "I felt like we had something that we could build on, but we were not able to finish."
Colts quarterback Peyton Manning threw three touchdown passes and rookie wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez caught six passes for 105 yards in the game. That eclipsed the effort of Falcons quarterback Joey Harrington, who finished 14-of-30 for 155 yards, a touchdowns and two interceptions. Wide receiver Roddy White put together the fifth 100-yard receiving game of his career with six catches for 104 yards and a score.
Running back Warrick Dunn also reached an important personal milestone in the game, becoming the 22nd player in NFL history to reach 10,000 career rushing yards. Dunn finished with 17 rushes for 70 yards.
The Falcons used a an opening drive that ate up 8:01 of the first quarter to take a 3-0 lead and a 48-yard touchdown pass from Harrington to White for a 10-0 advantage with 3:43 remaining in the first quarter.
But Manning took advantage of several odd penalties and a Falcons turnover to rapidly bring Indianapolis back.
Manning led three consecutive scoring drives to give the Colts 21 second-quarter points. The Falcons countered with another Morten Andersen field goal to keep the halftime deficit at 21-13. The team went into the locker room frustrated, however as two Indianapolis scoring drives came after curious, momentum-changing, plays.
Manning found Dallas Clark with an 8-yard touchdown pass five plays after a questionable "running into the kicker" penalty was placed on Falcons linebacker Demorrio Williams. Williams slid under Colts punter Hunter Smith on the play. The kicker, airborne from the kick, landed on Williams' back.
The call gave the Colts a first down and kept the drive alive.
The Falcons looked to answer on their next possession, but Harrington threw an interception at the Colts 39 as Laurent Robinson, the intended receiver, took a hit from Antoine Bethea. Kelvin Hayden plucked the ball from the air and returned it into Falcons territory. On the next play, Manning found Gonzalez with a 32-yard strike to the Falcons 16.
Two plays later, Manning hit Ben Utecht in the end zone with his third touchdown in the half.
The Colts' first three scoring drives measured three, 10 and four plays. The Falcons' opening drive tipped the scales at 19 plays, making it the longest drive thus far in the season for the Falcons and in the entire NFL.
"We started fast and our players came out and competed hard," Head Coach Bobby Petrino said. "I liked the way we moved the ball early. We were able to mix the run and the pass effectively. There were a couple of big plays that hurt us in the first half."
Manning's efficiency over-shadowed an early defensive charge by Atlanta, which included a sack on the Colts first possession that forced an early punt and confusion along the offensive line. Linebacker Michael Boley would lead the team with a career-high three sacks. Boley was also credited with a team-high nine tackles.
"It was disappointing after coming out like we did," Boley said. "I think that the running into the kicker call kind of changed the momentum around for us, unfortunately. But that's not an excuse. We did some things early, but we've got to keep it up for four quarters."
Cornerback DeAngelo Hall, who began covering receiver Reggie Wayne exclusively in the second half, picked up an interception inside the Falcons 10 in the third quarter. The team's offense stalled, however, and didn't establish a running game behind two backups along the offensive line (left tackle Quinn Ojinnaka and guard D'Anthony Batiste).
The Colts answered with a 4-yard touchdown run by running back Joseph Addai and would add an Adam Vinatieri field goal after Harrington's second interception of the game.
Manning finished the game with 272 passing yards and a 113.0 quarterback rating. The Colts held the ball for just 3:43 in the first quarter but finished the game with 365 yards of total offense. Indianapolis also rebounded to run one more offensive play than the Falcons (63-62).
Atlanta now gets the weekend off before traveling to St. Louis in Week 13.
"Thus far this has been a season where we have been close in games but just haven't been able to learn how to finish," Harrington said. "Our wins this season have given us a taste of victory and we need to focus on those positives in order to finish on a good note."
MORE FROM THE FALCONS-COLTS GAME:
- NEWS: Dunn passes 10,000-yard mark
- GAMEDAY: All the coverage from the Falcons-Colts game
- STATS AND PLAY-BY-PLAY: NFL.com Game Center
- GAME NOTES: Updates and injury news from the Georgia Dome press box
- INACTIVES AND STARTERS: Inactives and starters from Week 12
- QUOTABLE: Thoughts on the game from Falcons players and coaches
- VIDEO: Head Coach Bobby Petrino
- VIDEO: Quarterback Joey Harrington
- VIDEO: Tight end Alge Crumpler
- VIDEO: Running back Jerious Norwood
- VIDEO: Linebacker Michael Boley
- VIDEO: Running back Warrick Dunn
- VIDEO: Falcons-Colts Highlights
- VIDEO: Touring the Tailgates with Falcon Al
- VIDEO: Falcons-Colts Short
- VIDEO: Can't Miss Play: Roddy White
