The Atlanta Falcons won their first game in over a month on Sunday, a 24-15 victory over the New Orleans Saints to move to 5-6 on the season. Both teams turned the ball over multiple times but the Falcons made more plays in the fourth quarter.
Offensively, Atlanta leaned heavily on the ground game, while the defense let safety Jessie Bates III do the heavy lifting. Here are 10 takeaways from the Falcons’ Week 12 win over the Saints.
1
Falcons take 1st place in NFC South
The NFC South may be the worst division in the NFL, but the Atlanta Falcons sit atop that division 12 weeks into the season. Sunday’s win improved the team’s record to 3-0 against NFC South opponents this season. With a favorable schedule over the final six weeks, anything short of a division title has to be considered a failure at this point.
2
Jessie Bates takes over another game
Spending a bunch of money on one player in free agency rarely works out as well as teams hope, but Jessie Bates has been nothing short of spectacular since signing with the Falcons in the offseason. Shortly after the offense failed to convert on fourth down, Bates bailed the team out by intercepting Saints QB Derek Carr and returning it 92 yards for a touchdown. Bates later forced a fumble in the third quarter. It was another incredible performance for No. 3 — something that fans have grown accustomed to this season.
3
Ridder's roller-coaster day
Ridder may have some sort of fetish for red-zone turnovers, but he did show some grit by bouncing back from his two interceptions to lead the Falcons to victory on Sunday. The second-year QB made some clutch plays down the stretch with both his arm and his legs. His fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Bijan Robinson was a thing of beauty. However, every time Ridder shows some progress, he seems to do something that leaves fans scratching their heads.
4
Bijan goes Beast Mode
Arthur Smith said he expected to use Bijan Robinson more in this game and he wasn’t lying. The rookie running back rushed for 91 yards on 16 attempts, while adding three catches for 32 yards. Robinson rushed for a 10-yard touchdown in the first half, and his 26-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter essentially clinched the game for Atlanta.
5
Arthur Smith lives to coach another day
Head coach Arthur Smith has become public enemy No. 1 in Atlanta over the last few weeks, but Sunday’s win will cool down his seat for the moment at least. While Smith made a questionable decision to go for it on fourth down early in the game, he made some nice calls in the second half to get Robinson the ball. Sometimes Smith tries to be a little too cute with his play-calling, but his defense bailed him out big on Sunday and he will live to coach another day.
6
Drake London owns the Saints
Drake London led the team with five catches for 91 receiving yards on Sunday. The second-year wideout now has at least five catches for 70 receiving yards in all three career games against the Saints. For the season, London has 45 catches for 565 receiving yards and two touchdowns. It’s clear that Ridder favors London as his go-to target.
7
Quiet day for Kyle Pitts
Kyle Pitts is having another quiet season. The former No. 4 overall pick finished the game with two catches for 22 yards on two targets. For the season, Pitts has 37 catches for 441 receiving yards and one touchdown. Fans can live with Pitts’ pedestrian numbers as long as the team is winning, but you have to wonder why the young tight end isn’t a bigger asset to this team.
8
What's next for Atlanta?
Next up for the Falcons is a road matchup against the New York Jets. After losing Aaron Rodgers and benching Zach Wilson, the Jets will start Tim Boyle in Week 13. Boyle is 0-4 in his four career starts, with four touchdowns and 11 interceptions. New York is still a good defensive team with an effective running game, so it should be a tough challenge.
10
WATCH: Falcons postgame press conference
Falcons head coach Arthur Smith and QB Desmond Ridder spoke to the media following Sunday’s win over the Saints. Watch the full postgame press conference below.
