EDITOR'S NOTE: Over two weeks AtlantaFalcons.com will review the Falcons 2007 four games at a time. Today, we look at games five through eight. Check back Tuesday for games nine through 12. Click here for a review of the first quarter.
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Atlanta entered the second quarter of the season on a wave of confidence after a win over the Houston Texans in Week 4. They opened up the next set of games at Tennessee -- a playoff team that played strong defense for most of the year. A late quarterback change in that game started another wild ride for the Falcons, who began to get the offense in gear over the bye week and picked up a win over San Francisco in the final game of the quarter.
Tennessee Titans 20, Atlanta Falcons 13
L.P. Field
Week 5
For 59 minutes the Falcons clawed for a chance to get a win over the Titans. But, as it sometimes does in the NFL, the game came down to one snap.
In this case, it was a sack on fourth-and-goal at the 4-yard line with 60 seconds to play that ended a late Falcons rally to tie the game and Atlanta fell 20-13 at LP Field. Fittingly, that one play was a collection of many of the game's story lines.
The Falcons got the ball deep in Titans territory after Demorrio Williams broke up a Tennessee punt. Six plays later Titans defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch, the leader of what would become the league's fifth-best defense, effectively ended the game by getting a hold of Falcons quarterback Byron Leftwich's leg and yanking him down as receivers broke toward the end zone.
Leftwich, who started the game as the team's third, or emergency, quarterback came into the game in the fourth quarter. A former first-round pick who hadn't played in a game since the Jacksonville Jaguars released him before the season, Leftwich missed on a few passes, but gave the Falcons a chance deep in the red zone as the game came to a close.
"I thought Joey (Harrington) got hit a lot and I thought there were some plays there that he didn't make late in the third quarter and that maybe a change would give us a spark and give us some energy and I made the decision to put Byron in," former coach Bobby Petrino said at the time.
The Falcons defense and special teams left their mark in the game and gave the Falcons multiple chances to win by taking the ball away from the Titans five times. On offense, however, Atlanta struggled to take full advantage of the opportunities. Three interceptions on defense turned into six points on field goals. Three missed field goals, two on long tries by Michael Koenen, added to the frustration.
Eventually a Falcons turnover spelled the difference in the game.
Tennessee defensive back Vincent Fuller picked off Harrington with one minute remaining in the third quarter and returned it 76 yards for a touchdown.
STAT OF THE GAME: The Titans had five turnovers in the game.
QUOTABLE: "We didn’t want to let (Vince Young) into a comfort zone," said linebacker Michael Boley, who had 17 tackles and an interception in the game. "When you let a guy like that get comfortable, he can beat you in several different ways and today we didn’t let him get into that zone"
FROM THE BLOG: "What happened in the closing moments of today's 20-13 loss is something like I've never seen. So many chances... But, I know from experience most teams would start asking questions about now. Not the Falcons, though."
MORE FROM THE FALCONS-TITANS GAME:
- GAMEDAY: All the coverage from the Titans-Falcons game
- STATS AND PLAY-BY-PLAY: NFL.com Game Center
- GAME NOTES: Updates and injury news from the LP Field press box
- INACTIVES: Inactives and starters from Week 5
- QUOTABLE: Thoughts on the game from Falcons players and coaches
- VIDEO: Head Coach Bobby Petrino
- VIDEO: Quarterback Joey Harrington
- VIDEO: Quarterback Byron Leftwich
- HIGHLIGHTS: Game highlights from NFL Network
New York Giants 31, Atlanta Falcons 10
The Georgia Dome
Week 6
The Atlanta Falcons entered this Monday night game with the Giants looking to hog the spotlight on the prime-time stage. Instead it was a group of players from New York -- one of the world's greatest entertainment spots -- that starred.
Giants quarterback Eli Manning threw two touchdown passes, including a 48-yard strike to wide receiver Plaxico Burress as New York defeated the home-standing Falcons 31-10 on Monday Night Football.
The Falcons had their opportunities.
The defense forced three turnovers (two interceptions and a fumble) but the offense failed to convert them into points. Instead, the return of Pro Bowl defensive tackle Rod Coleman, who missed the first five games with a knee injury, and a stellar night by second-year running back Jerious Norwood went for naught.
Instead, the Giants held the Falcons to 284 total yards and got enough pressure from the defense (four total sacks) to rattle a Falcons offense that started two new tackles in Renardo Foster and Tyson Clabo.
The loss was more frustrating considering how the Falcons handled the Giants' big-name pass rush in the early going.
Quarterback Joey Harrington led a march down the field after the opening kickoff and the team took a 3-0 lead on a 47-yard field goal by Morten Andersen that just skipped over the cross bar. The Falcons went on to take a 10-3 lead off a 67-yard touchdown by Norwood.
The team got interceptions from cornerback DeAngelo Hall and Michael Boley in the game, but didn't manage a score outside of the first quarter.
"We fought, but at the end of the day, we just didn’t make the plays we needed to make," linebacker Keith Brooking said. "It’s a tough loss. We fought hard and I thought we gave a great effort, but they lined up and beat us physically towards the end of the game. We had a lot of plays and we wore them down, but in the end, we couldn’t stop them.”
STAT OF THE GAME: The Falcons held the ball for just 20:22 and the Giants put up 28 first downs in the game.
QUOTABLE: “It was a tough loss," defensive end John Abraham said. "I can’t really say what we did or didn’t do. I know we had three turnovers and on defense we didn’t stop them like we wanted to. I know I didn’t get enough pressure on the quarterback like I planned on doing. It was a team loss. I don’t think we played well in any phase of the game.”
FROM THE BLOG: "It was a tough locker room. Quiet. You can cut the frustration with a knife these days around the Georgia Dome and that isn't a good thing."
MORE FROM THE FALCONS-GIANTS GAME:
- GAMEDAY: All the coverage from the Giants-Falcons game
- STATS AND PLAY-BY-PLAY: NFL.com Game Center
- GAME NOTES: Updates and injury news from the Georgia Dome press box
- INACTIVES: Inactives and starters from Week 6
- QUOTABLE: Thoughts on the game from Falcons players and coaches
- VIDEO: Head Coach Bobby Petrino
- VIDEO: Quarterback Joey Harrington
- VIDEO: Linebacker Keith Brooking
- VIDEO: Cornerback DeAngelo Hall
- VIDEO: Tight end Alge Crumpler
- VIDEO: Running back Jerious Norwood
- VIDEO: Can't Miss Play -- Jerious Norwood
- VIDEO: Falcons-Giants Analysis
- HIGHLIGHTS: Game highlights from NFL Network
New Orleans Saints 22, Atlanta Falcons 16
The Louisiana Superdome
Week 7
In his first start since October of 2006, quarterback Byron Leftwich -- for a half -- made the plays to add some extra spice to the Falcons offense. He wasn't able to finish what he started, however, as an injury forced him out of the game and the Falcons fell 22-16 at the Louisiana Superdome.
Leftwich stood tall in the pocket. He showed poise, toughness, confidence and arm strength in leading the team on three first-half scoring drives, including a 9-yard touchdown pass to Roddy White that gave the Falcons a 13-7 lead at halftime.
Atlanta actually dominated the first-half proceedings. The team held the ball for 20 minutes and 24 seconds in the first two quarters, ran 38 offensive plays and held a 210-115 advantage in total yards. Then the Falcons lined up for their first offensive series of the second half.
Leftwich stood tall in the pocket one more time.
A deep ball for Joe Horn on second down fell incomplete and Leftwich fell to the turf between two Saints defenders. He left the field favoring his right ankle with help of trainers and would not return. He would later leave the field on a cart.
Quarterback Joey Harrington, who started the first six games of the season, came in and finished the game 12-of-18 for 128 yards and no touchdowns. Leftwich was 15-of-23 passing for 145 yards. He left with a 97.2 passer rating. He also helped the offense bail itself out of some less-than-desirable situations.
Harrington overcame a shaky start to lead the Falcons on a 10-play, fourth-quarter scoring drive that ended with a 21-yard field goal. That gave the Falcons a 16-14 lead and canceled out a 24-yard touchdown run by Saints rookie Pierre Thomas that gave the home team a slim, 14-13 advantage in the third quarter.
But the team would lose starting left tackle Renardo Foster later in the game and the Saints would put together a game-winning drive finished off by a Reggie Bush touchdown reception and two-point conversion.
STAT OF THE GAME: The Falcons had zero turnovers, gained more yards than the Saints and won the battle of time of possession, but lost in the fourth quarter.
QUOTABLE: “It’s always tough to come back here, especially on a team like the Falcons that aren’t really liked by fans here to begin with," said Falcons kicker Morten Andersen, a former New Orleans Saint. "I kind of expected fans to react to me the way they did."
FROM THE BLOG: "It will likely be a short week at Flowery Branch and players will get a chance to find their favorite vacation spot. But they won't forget about football. How can they when the greatest game of the year may be just around the corner?"
MORE FROM THE FALCONS-SAINTS GAME:
- GAMEDAY: All the coverage from the Saints-Falcons game
- STATS AND PLAY-BY-PLAY: NFL.com Game Center
- GAME NOTES: Updates and injury news from the Superdome press box
- INACTIVES AND STARTERS: Inactives and starters from Week 7
- QUOTABLE: Thoughts on the game from Falcons players and coaches
- VIDEO: Head Coach Bobby Petrino
- HIGHLIGHTS: Game highlights from NFL Network
- HIGHLIGHTS: Byron Leftwich highlights
Atlanta Falcons 20, San Francisco 49ers 16
The Georgia Dome
Week 8
A revived running attack and an aggressive defense led by safety Lawyer Milloy and defensive end John Abraham helped the Falcons take a 20-16 victory over San Francisco.
Victory No. 2.
The Falcons rushed for 155 yards, including an even 100 by Warrick Dunn, in the game and got two field goals by Morten Andersen in the victory. The team also put pressure on a 49ers team that came into the game missing two offensive starters to ensure the crowd of 66,049 left the Georgia Dome happy.
San Francisco running back Michael Robinson, filling in for an injured Frank Gore, fumbled in the red zone early but tight end Vernon Davis recovered to keep the drive alive. That allowed San Francisco to cap a 10-play, 59-yard first-quarter series with a 9-yard touchdown run by Maurice Hicks.
Dunn carried the ball seven times for 47 yards on the Falcons first drive and finished off the march with a 9-yard touchdown run to tie the game. Dunn was held up at the line of scrimmage on the scoring play, but pushed off the backs of his offensive line, spun out to his left and ran untouched into the end zone.
Atlanta took a 14-7 lead into the locker room after a 1-yard touchdown run by fullback Ovie Mughelli -- the first touchdown run of his career. The score was set up by a 9-yard run by Jerious Norwood and, before that, a key third-and-19 completion from quarterback Joey Harrington to wide receiver Roddy White.
San Francisco took the ball to open the second half and quickly marched 29 yards down field. The Niners looked for more on third-and-short inside of Falcons territory by rushing to the line and preventing any Falcons substitutions. That didn't phase Milloy or the rest of the defense. The team clogged the middle of the field with a blitz and Milloy got into the backfield and dropped Hicks for a loss.
It was one of several big plays for Milloy, who came up big late to preserve the win.
The 49ers drove into the red zone as the clock turned under 10 minutes. Alex Smith turned to the pass inside the 10, however, and found Davis over the middle for a 9-yard gain. He nearly scored, but safety Chris Crocker got him with a shoe-string tackle that set up third-and-goal at the 1 with 8:37 to play.
The 49ers went with a big set with multiple tight ends and gave the ball to Robinson, who lost 3 yards when he was met by -- who else -- Milloy. That forced another field goal and a 17-16 Falcons lead that would stick.
"Guys played hard and the defense made stops where we needed them to," Dunn said. "The offense was consistent enough to make plays and put pressure on the defense. When you finally get a win you have to rejoice in it. We are just going to savor the moment and then get back to work come Wednesday."
STAT OF THE GAME: The Falcons allowed the 49ers to convert on just 23 percent of their third-down attempts and held the visitors to 3.9 yards per play.
QUOTABLE: "All week on tape we saw that they really couldn’t block as well as they probably needed to, so a lot of us were excited about our package going in. Coach (Mike) Zimmer put in a good package as far as pressure-wise," Milloy said. "When you get your number called, you have to go out there and produce.”
FROM THE BLOG: "You're probably watching the Colts-Patriots game right now, but if you can take a break I would encourage you to reflect on how this win feels and how happy it made your Atlanta Falcons."
MORE FROM THE FALCONS-NINERS GAME:
- GAMEDAY: All the coverage from the 49ers-Falcons 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 9
- QUOTABLE: Thoughts on the game from Falcons players and coaches
- VIDEO: Head Coach Bobby Petrino
- VIDEO: Safety Lawyer Milloy
- VIDEO: Defensive end John Abraham
- VIDEO: Running back Warrick Dunn
- VIDEO: Touring the Tailgates with Falcon Al
