Here's a quick roundup of some notable numbers found within the 23-17 Falcons loss to the Saints on Sunday:
- 0 - Number of points Falcons defense surrendered to the Saints in the first quarter.
- 1 - First down catches for Falcons second-year starting FB Bradie Ewing. The 15-yard first quarter reception was the first of Ewing's career after he spent his entire rookie campaign on Injured Reserve.
- 2 - Full seasons of experience for the Falcons' starting cornerbacks heading into Sunday's game. Robert McClain and rookie CB Desmond Trufant notched starts, while 10-year veteran Asante Samuel was inactive with a thigh injury.
- 3 - NFL players who have recorded a catch in 17 consecutive seasons. Tony Gonzalez joined that club today with his first quarter 7-yd TD catch. Only Gonzalez, WR Jerry Rice and WR Irving Fryar have accomplished the feat.
- 6.7 - Average yards gained per offensive play for the Falcons, besting the 6.3 yards per play for New Orleans.
- 8 - Combined penalties in the game, with 6 for New Orleans and 2 for the Falcons.
- 18 - First downs for each team in the game. The Saints had only 7 first downs in the first half, while the Falcons mustered only 7 in the second half.
- 27 - Percent of third downs the Falcons converted in the game (3 of 11). On the flipside, the Saints converted 46% of their third downs (6 of 13).
- 30 - Tackles by the Falcons' starting secondary. McClain finished second on the team with 10, followed by Moore (8), DeCoud (7) and Trufant (5). Starting middle linebacker Akeem Dent led all Falcons with 11.
- 45 - Receiving yards for Saints TE Jimmy Graham Sunday. In two games against Atlanta last season, Graham amassed 205 yards on 7 catches.
- 61 - Receiving yards for Falcons WR Harry Douglas on Atlanta's first scoring drive, 37 of which were "yards after the catch" (YAC).
- 96.8 - Matt Ryan's quarterback rating on the day. Ryan finished 25 of 38 for 304 yards, 2 TDs and an INT that occurred in the waning moments as a potential game-winning pass was deflected in the end zone by Saints' safety Kenny Vaccaro.
- 122 - All-purpose yards for RB Steven Jackson in his Falcons' regular-season debut (77 rushing, 45 passing). Jackson ignited the Falcons offense on their first drive of the second half with a 50-yard run to the New Orleans' 5-yard line, which three plays later culminated in a touchdown catch by Julio Jones that put the Falcons ahead, 17-13.
- 151.6 - Matt Ryan's QB Rating in the first quarter, after he completed 6 of 8 passes for 91 yards and a TD pass. He also rushed for 12 yards on a first down scramble.
- 164 - Number of hours until the Falcons home opener next Sunday against the St. Louis Rams.
