Atlanta, GA- Despite a 17-0 halftime lead, the Atlanta Falcons lose 31-27 to their NFC South Division rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the final home game of the 2020 NFL season.
Atlanta Falcons interim head coach Raheem Morris on what happened in the second half, “Second half they did a nice job of staying down third down and manageables. We didn’t get to many third downs in the second half. The ones we did, did a nice job of protecting them and picking them up. Tom came out, a couple screens, a couple nice throws in some of these run plays, we call run alerts. Able to get some of those things kicked out, receivers picked up big yardage, in order to keep those guys (indiscernible) down and distances.”
Things started great for Atlanta in the first half as the defense held the Buccaneers to just 60-yards of offense while adding a field goal and two touchdown passes from quarterback Matt Ryan. Once the second half began, however, the script flipped as Tampa Bay and quarterback Tom Brady came alive to 356-yards of offense and four touchdowns to stun Atlanta at home.
Matt Ryan led the way for the Falcons, completing 34 of his 49 passes for 356-yards and three touchdowns. Despite the loss, it was good to see the veteran quarterback bounce back after struggling with three interceptions last week against the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Falcons really struggled on the ground, as Ito Smith led the way with just 24-yards on six carries. The running backs weren’t asked to do too much with the success they were having in the air, but the lack of a balanced attack might have caused the Tampa defense to adjust in the second half and drop an extra defender back into coverage and slow down the Atlanta air attack late.
With star receiver Julio Jones out with an injury, receiver Calvin Ridley once again stepped up with a big game. The third-year receiver out of the University of Alabama caught 10 passes for 163-yards and a touchdown. Ridley has really emerged this year, developing into a great tandem with Julio Jones when both are on the field.
After falling behind 17-0 in the first half, the Tampa Bay offense really figured out how to attack the Atlanta secondary as Tom Brady and his receivers really got clicking.
Mike Evans was a big reason for the Buccaneer’s comeback, as the big target caught six passes for 110-yards and reeled in several big catches within the 5-yard line that set up short rushing touchdowns for running back Leonard Fournette.
Antonio Brown had the play of the game, as the veteran receivers used his speed down the sideline to get separation for Tom Brady to get him the ball for a 46-yard touchdown. The score gave the Buccaneers the final 31-27 score in the 4th quarter on their way to the victory. Brown finished with five catches for 93-yards and the long touchdown and has been a big pickup for Tampa since he joined the team in week 9.
The loss stings for an Atlanta team that is now 4-10 and eliminated from playoff contention. The Falcons have blown several leads throughout the season and have got to find a way to play complete games consistently going forward.
Atlanta will next travel to Kansas City to take on the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs on Sunday with a 1 p.m. kickoff.
