Yard Touchdown | Atlanta Falcons Tickets

Falcons Hold Off Locker, Titans for 23-17 Win

They still had to sweat it out at the end.

Roddy White had seven receptions for a season-high 147 yards and Atlanta fended off a comeback led by rookie quarterback Jake Locker, beating the Tennessee Titans 23-17 Sunday.

Locker took over late in the third quarter after Matt Hasselbeck went out with a sprained right elbow, having endured an ineffective day even before he was hurt.

The youngster hooked up with Nate Washington on a pair of touchdown passes that made a game of it, but the Falcons managed to run out the clock after Matt Ryan completed a third-and-6 pass to Harry Douglas that was barely enough for the first down.

Atlanta (6-4) jumped out to a 13-0 lead on Ryan’s 17-yard touchdown pass to Tony Gonzalez and a pair of short field goals by Matt Bryant. Michael Turner stretched the lead to 20-3 with a 4-yard touchdown run on the opening possession of the second half, but Turner’s fourth-quarter fumble deep in Tennessee territory allowed the Titans (5-5) to get back in it.

The Falcons were solid if unspectacular, while the Titans simply made too many mistakes to win on the road for the second week in a row. Tennessee was penalized 10 times — two of which came on third down to extend Atlanta scoring drives — and Hasselbeck threw an interception that led to the first of Bryant’s three field goals.

The Falcons were coming off a 26-23 loss to the Saints, who prevailed in overtime after Atlanta coach Mike Smith made a much-debated decision to go for it on fourth down deep in his own territory. New Orleans stuffed Turner for no gain and kicked a game-ending field goal four plays later.

Smith and his players insisted that game was behind them, and they got 100 yards rushing out of Turner and 316 yards passing from Ryan.

Then there’s White, who was leading the NFL in dropped passes (nine) and personal fouls by an offensive skills player (three). He dropped another one against the Titans but more than made up for it with his longest reception of the season, a 43-yarder that set up Turner’s touchdown. White also took a short pass for a 32-yard gain, leading to Bryant’s final field goal and a 23-3 lead that looked safe, especially when Hasselbeck went out.

But Locker rallied the Titans. On his third snap, he threw a deep pass to Washington, who came down with the ball and got away from two defensive backs for a 40-yard touchdown.

The Falcons were driving for the clinching score when Turner had the ball knocked loose at the Tennessee 8 by Colin McCarthy. Will Witherspoon fell on the ball, and Locker guided Tennessee on a 14-play, 84-yard drive capped by a 4-yard scoring pass to Washington with 3:06 remaining.

But the rookie didn’t get a chance to complete the comeback.

Hasselbeck had a forgettable day, going 13 of 25 for 124 yards. Locker finished 9 of 19 for 140 yards. Chris Johnson was totally stifled after his best game of the season, a 130-yard effort against Carolina. He was held to a season-low 13 yards on 12 carries, his longest gain going for only 6 yards.

Gonzalez became just the 13th player in NFL history to go past 13,000 yards receiving. He finished with six catches for 74 yards.

Falcons Rally to Beat Newton’s Panthers 31-17

Returning to the formula that worked so well the last three years, the Falcons kept handing the ball to Michael Turner and finally looked like the team that’s supposed to be a contender.

“We need to get our identity back, and that starts with running the football,” said Turner, who rumbled for 139 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday’s 31-17 victory over the Carolina Panthers. “We want to bury teams.”

The Falcons (3-3) were clearly intent on re-establishing their trademark offensive style against a vulnerable defense. Turner had a season-high 27 carries, and Atlanta ran the ball 35 times in all — 13 more than they threw it.

“We’d like to be able to do that every week,” said Matt Ryan, who passed for just 163 yards — and didn’t mind a bit.

For Cam Newton and the rebuilding Panthers, it was another tough loss.

Carolina (1-5) has been in every game, but keeps coming up short at the end. Newton had three interceptions in his homecoming to Atlanta, including a crucial pick by defensive tackle Corey Peters that set up the Falcons’ clinching TD during a 17-point fourth quarter.

“At some point, you’ve got to look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself what can you do to make it better,” Newton said. “It’s not the time that you point the fingers and say, ‘It’s his fault.’ It’s time that we as a team take ownership of ourselves.”

Newton, who grew up just a few miles south of the Georgia Dome, wowed the crowd much of the day. He threw for 237 yards and took off on a 14-yard touchdown run that put the Panthers ahead 17-14 heading to the final quarter. He even celebrated with Deion Sanders’ high-step dance in the end zone, marking a day when the retired Hall of Famer was honored by the Falcons at halftime.

Then, things turned sour.

After Matt Bryant’s tying field goal, Ryan scored on a 1-yard sneak to put the Falcons ahead 24-17. Newton got the ball back, only to make his biggest blunder of the day trying to set up a screen pass.

Corey Peters, a 305-pound defensive tackle, caught the rookie quarterback off guard by dropping into coverage. When Newton flipped a short pass, Peters reached up with one hand to pick it off at the Carolina 40.

The Falcons offense did the rest, driving for the clinching touchdown. Turner barreled into the end zone from 2 yards out with 1:56 left to hand the Panthers another excruciating loss. Their first four defeats were by a total of 18 points, and this one was much closer than the two-touchdown margin.

“Not good. Not acceptable,” first-year coach Ron Rivera said. “We’re six weeks into this. It’s time for us to start to play like we’ve been around.”

Turner also scored on a 1-yard run at the end of the first quarter and broke a streak of three straight games without reaching 100 yards. Ryan, who was averaging more than 39 passes a game, completed 14 of 22 in more of a complementary role.

“It started with the O-line,” Turner said. “They came out with a nasty attitude today, that they were going to move the line of scrimmage. I love to see green, man. You give me some space, I’ll do what I do.”

Newton finished 21 of 35, including a deflected pass that was picked off in the end zone with less than a minute left in the first half. His third interception didn’t really matter, coming on a desperation pass into the end zone on the final play of the game.

The rookie also led the Panthers in rushing with 50 yards on six carries.

Ryan threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Ovie Mughelli, giving the Falcons a 14-10 lead at halftime. Jonathan Stewart scored Carolina’s first touchdown on a 1-yard run, after Olindo Mare opened the scoring for the Panthers with a 42-yard field goal.

The Panthers didn’t have to punt until late in the third quarter, but the Atlanta defense took control in the final period. Carolina’s final four possessions ended with two punts and a pair of interceptions.

Newton was playing at the Georgia Dome for the first time since he accounted for six touchdowns in the Southeastern Conference championship game last December, leading Auburn to a 56-17 rout of South Carolina. The Tigers went on to claim the national title, and Newton headed to the pros as the top overall pick and a Heisman Trophy winner.

The wins have been a lot harder to come by in the NFL.

“We had an excellent game plan going into the week, but the coaches can only do so much,” Newton said. “It’s time for the players to start stepping up and making plays.”

Notes: Turner has rushed for 100 yards 22 times in his Falcons career, tied for second in team history with William Andrews. Gerald Riggs leads with 25 games topping the century mark. … The Falcons wore throwback uniforms, donning red helmets and black jerseys. In keeping with that theme, Mughelli celebrated his touchdown with the “Dirty Bird” dance, which became famous during the team’s lone Super Bowl season in 1998. … Atlanta did a good job shutting down Carolina’s top receiver, Steve Smith, who came into the game averaging nearly 23 yards per catch and more than 121 yards per game. He was held to five receptions for 66 yards.

Eagles Lose Vick, Lead Falcons 31-21

Matt Ryan threw three touchdown passes, including two to Tony Gonzalez, to give Atlanta a 21-10 early in the third quarter.

Vick, making his much-anticipated return to Atlanta, regrouped after two fumbles and an interception to lead two quick scoring drives that gave the lead back to the Eagles.

Vick, who had a 5-yard scoring pass to Maclin in the first half, added a 36-yard touchdown pass to Maclin in the third quarter. An interception by Philadelphia’s Asante Samuel set up a short drive that ended with McCoy’s scoring run on first down from the 8.

Vick was knocked out of the game with about 3 minutes remaining in the third quarter, when he was knocked into one of his linemen. He appeared to spit blood out of his mouth as he was escorted off the field.

With backup Vince Young inactive with a hamstring injury, the Eagles turned to third-string quarterback Mike Kafka.

McCoy’s 2-yard touchdown run pushed the lead to 10 points.

Soon after the score, Vick was escorted off the field. There was no immediate update on his status.

Ryan’s second scoring pass to Gonzalez, his veteran tight end, gave Atlanta a 21-10 lead.

The Eagles answered with two quick scoring drives.

With the Eagles leading 10-7, Vick’s 29-yard pass to tight end Brent Celek had Philadelphia back in Falcons’ territory.

On first down from the Atlanta 4-yard line, Falcons defensive tackle Peria Jerry surged through the line to hit Vick before he could hand the ball to McCoy, forcing the fumble.

Defensive end Ray Edwards picked up the loose ball at the 12 and rambled 64 yards before he was caught from behind by DeSean Jackson at the Eagles 24.

Ryan completed a 13-yard pass to Gonzalez before passing to the tight end again on third down from the Eagles 4.

Gonzalez reached high with his right hand to bring down the pass at the back of the end zone. An officials’ review confirmed he had control of the ball and both feet in the end zone.

Vick, scrambling for a gain on the Eagles’ next possession, fumbled again when hit by John Abraham. The fumble was recovered by linebacker Stephen Nicholas.

Vick, capped a 12-play drive that covered 84 yards with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Maclin early in the second quarter. Vick dropped back and looked to his left before stopping and throwing to Maclin, who lined up left before crossing the field to his right at the goal line to make the touchdown catch early in the second quarter.

Vick had a 29-yard pass to Jason Avant on his next drive to help set up a 22-yard field goal by Alex Henery that gave the Eagles a 10-7 lead.

Henery was not close on a 63-yard field goal attempt at the end of the half.

Ryan’s 2-yard touchdown pass to Roddy White gave the Falcons a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.

Vick, the former Falcons star, was making his first trip to Atlanta as a starter for another team. He made his first return as a backup in 2009, and ran and threw for touchdowns as a backup in the Eagles’ 34-7 win.

Vick’s return generated a strong turnout of his No. 7 jerseys, both in Eagles green and in red or black from his days with the Falcons.

An officials’ review negated a 28-yard pass from Ryan to rookie Julio Jones in the second quarter.

The pass hit Jones’ hands, went up in the air and was touched by Coleman before hitting the ground and bouncing back to Jones.

The officials initially ruled Jones made the catch, but the replay clearly showed the ball hitting the ground. Ryan was unsuccessful in his attempt to call a quick play before play could be stopped for the review.

Four-time Pro Bowl left tackle Jason Peters started for the Eagles after suffering an ankle injury in practice on Friday. He had been listed as questionable.

As expected, the Falcons were without center Todd McClure, who missed his second straight game with a knee injury, and defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux, who injured his knee in last week’s loss at Chicago.