| Matt Ryan celebrates with Tony Gonzalez following the Falcons' 30-28 comeback win on Sunday. (AP) |
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan , with no timeouts, engineered an improbable 76-yard drive beginning from his own 1-yard line to lead the Falcons to a 30-28 victory over Carolina and maintain Atlanta’s sterling 4-0 record. Matt Bryant’s game-winning 40-yard field goal with five seconds left elicited the most emotion the even-keeled Ryan has shown all season, as he stood screaming, arms raised above his head after stunning the Carolina Panthers at the Georgia Dome.
Sunday’s game was a test for the Falcons, who haven’t been challenged much this season. It forced the defense to make a late-game stop when it had to and it gave Ryan a chance to operate the two-minute offense under pressure, a scenario not easily duplicated in practice. The victory covered an awful day by the offensive line and bailed out a defense that conceded numerous big plays to Cam Newton.
Offense: B+
Offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter deserves a lot of credit for opening up the playbook and rediscovering Michael Turner’s rushing abilities. Turner, 30, finished with a season-high 103 rushing yards on just 13 carries. A 60-yard screen pass to Turner turned into the biggest scoring play of the season and Ryan answered all the critics who questioned his arm strength with a 59-yard pass to Roddy White to set up the game-winning field goal. The throw was actually longer than that as Ryan was at least five yards deep into his own end zone. It was amazing that Ryan even got the throw off considering his offensive line had already given up seven sacks on the day, the most Ryan has ever taken in a game. Previous week's grade: A-
Defense: C+
You don’t let up 404 yards of offense and get high grades but to the Falcons credit, they stopped Carolina on two fourth quarter drives, giving the ball back to Ryan with a chance to win the game. On those drives, Atlanta’s defense gave up 19 yards, one first down, and DE John Abraham forced the crucial fumble that prevented Newton from getting what was likely the game’s final first down. Poor tackling was an issue against the Panthers’ Greg Olsen, who pinballed his way past three Falcons defenders to score the first touchdown just 3:15 into the game. Previous week's grade: A
Special teams: A
While Bryant’s game-winning 40-yard boot will be the one replayed over and over again, he also hit a 33-yard attempt with 4:54 remaining to cut Carolina’s lead to 28-27, which was equally as significant as his final kick. Bryant has been automatic this season, drilling all nine of his attempts.Previous week's grade: B-
Coaching: B
Defensive coordinator Mike Nolan had the right idea by playing a three linebacker set with MLB Akeem Dent instead of the Falcons’ typical nickel set in an attempt to contain Newton. Unfortunately, the same aggressive defense that has caused 12 takeaways on the season burned the Falcons against Carolina. The Panthers took a 28-24 lead on a 36-yard, fourth-quarter screen pass to Kealoha Pilares, which was very similar to the play Turner had scored on earlier in the game. Nolan called for a blitz, but the Panthers line let them through and then had numerous blockers for Pilares after Newton dumped him the ball.
Koetter and coach Mike Smith deserve credit for trusting Ryan to air the ball out numerous times to Roddy White and Julio Jones. The Falcons are more prone to long, sustained drives that often result in touchdowns. But Atlanta matched Carolina’s big-play ability with numerous play-action deep balls. Previous week's grade: A
For more Falcons coverage, follow Mike Singer @CBSFalcons.