ATLANTA-- Game Notes from the Falcons-Bills game at the Georgia Dome on Dec. 27, 2009.
With a 31-3 victory over the Buffalo Bills, the Falcons concluded the season with a 3-1 mark over the AFC East Division and have improved their home record to 13-3 since 2008 under Head Coach Mike Smith. * Atlanta's defense held the Bills to 178 net yards, 40 rushing yards and 138 net passing yards. The totals are all the lowest for the Falcons defense this season. The net yardage and passing totals are also the lowest since a 2008 meeting against Oakland (77 net yards and 10 net passing yards). The rushing total is the lowest since a 2006 meeting against Arizona (26 yards). * Quarterback Matt Ryan completed 18 of 35 passes for 250 yards and three touchdowns in a win over Buffalo. With the victory, Ryan has improved his record to 13-1 in games he has started at the Georgia Dome over his career and 6-2 against AFC opponents. In games against AFC opponents, Ryan has thrown 11 touchdowns and only one interception. * Matt Ryan finished the contest with three touchdowns, marking his second-career three score game and the first since a Week 2 meeting against Carolina. Ryan also finished with a 103.3 passer rating against Buffalo and has now improved his career record to 9-0 in games where he finishes with a 100.0-plus rating. * On Atlanta's first offensive play of the game, quarterback Matt Ryan hit wide receiver Roddy White for a 42-yard touchdown to give the Falcons a 7-0 lead. White then found the end zone again on a five-yard pass from Ryan, sealing the 31-3 victory. Ryan and White have connected for eight touchdowns this season and 15 dating back to 2008. * Matt Ryan's first quarter touchdown pass to wide receiver Roddy White was the eighth pass and catch combination between the two from 40-plus yards and the sixth from 40-plus yards that went for a touchdown dating back to 2008. * Wide receiver Roddy White completed his third consecutive 1,000-yard receiving season after totaling 139 yards against the Bills. White is only the second player in team history to record three consecutive 1,000-yard campaigns. Only Andre Rison has accomplished the feat (1992-94). * White finished the game with eight receptions for 139 yards and two touchdowns, which marked the fourth 100-yard contest for the fifth-year veteran this season and the 18th of his career. His two touchdowns also represented his third-career multiple-score game. * Matt Ryan found wide receiver Marty Booker for a 12-yard touchdown strike in the third quarter to give Atlanta a 17-0 lead. The score marked the 12th multiple-touchdown game of his career. * Wide receiver Marty Booker posted his best game of the season contributing with four receptions for 57 yards and his first touchdown of the season which is also the 37th of his career. * With his first reception of the game in the second quarter, tight end Tony Gonzalez increased his consecutive games with a reception streak to 146 games. Entering Sunday's contest, Gonzalez ranked third in the NFL with his streak. * In the third quarter, defensive end Chauncey Davis forced a fumble that was recovered by rookie defensive end Lawrence Sidbury and returned for an 11-yard touchdown. The TD and fumble recovery are both firsts for Sidbury and Davis' forced fumble is the second of his career. The score gave Atlanta a 24-0 advantage. * With one sack against Buffalo, defensive end John Abraham moved into a tie for seventh place on the Falcons all-time sack record list with Jeff Merrow. Abraham has now totaled 36.0 sacks over his four seasons with the Falcons. In his last five games against the Bills, he has totaled five sacks. * On Buffalo's first offensive possession of the game, Falcons defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux logged Atlanta's first sack on a third down play which forced a Bills punt. Babineaux's sack now gives him a team-leading 5.5 for the season. * Cornerback Brent Grimes totaled his fifth interception of the season and his third in the last two contests. He now leads the team with five picks on the year. * Rookie cornerback Christopher Owens grabbed his first career interception in the second quarter when he tracked down a Bills quarterback Brian Brohm pass. * Head Coach Mike Smith improved his career record to 5-0 when holding opposing offenses to under 300 yards of net offense. The Falcons are also 10-2 when holding opponents to under 100 net rushing yards since 2008. * Kicker Matt Bryant split the uprights on his second-longest career field goal of 51 yards in the second quarter, giving Atlanta a 10-0 lead. The kick was his longest since a 62-yard boot against Philadelphia on October 22, 2006.
MORE FALCONS-BILLS COVERAGE:
GAMEDAY LIVE:Complete Falcons-Bills coverage from AF.com * GAME RECAP:John Manasso takes a look at some of the key moments * GAME CENTER:Stats and more from NFL.com * FIRST TAKE:Daver Archer chats with some of the key contributors * MULTIMEDIA:Highlights and more player interviews from Falcons-Bills * J. MIKE'S MISSIVES:Additional thoughts from the AF.com Managing Editor * THE BEAT BLOG:Quarter-by-quarter updates from AF.com's John Manasso * GAME NOTES:Official game notes from the Falcons-Bills game * TRANSCRIPTS:Postgame thoughts from Falcons players | Bills * INACTIVES:Game inactives and starters from Sunday afternoon * PHOTOS:Images from the Falcons 31-3 win over the Buffalo Bills * FORUMS:Talk about the game with other fans on FalconsLIFE
