ATLANTA–The Falcons accomplished two notable feats in their 23-20 defeat of the New York Giants on Monday night.
a) As a change of pace from earlier games, the red-clad faithful at Mercedes-Benz Stadium weren't sitting on the edge of their seats until the last play, sweating out the frenzied result.
In this case, the Falcons essentially had the victory salted away by the second-to-last play (Odell Beckham Jr.'s garbage-time touchdown didn't leave adequate time on the clock).
b) For the first time this season, the Falcons have experienced the feeling of notching back-to-back victories.
The second item holds greater importance, since every other NFC South club earned a win this weekend, thus putting extreme pressure on Atlanta to hold serve.
Yes, the Falcons still trail the division-leading Saints (5-1) by ostensibly 2 1/2 games–factoring in New Orleans' head-to-head victory from Week 3–but 3-4 sounds markedly better than 2-5.
Especially since Atlanta only has three home games left on the schedule.
Consequently, after their bye next weekend, the Falcons will be the only NFL team with six road trips between Weeks 9-17.
The Falcons were hardly a balanced outfit against the Giants (1-6 overall), attempting only 20 carries (despite leading for long chunks) and averaging only 3.6 yards per carry.
But then again, Atlanta chose wisely in riding the hot hand of quarterback Matt Ryan, who systematically shredded New York's defense for 379 yards passing and one touchdown–highlighted by a game-ending streak of 18 straight completions.
NOTE: Ryan will have a chance to break the NFL record for consecutive completions on Nov. 4.
The game itself had a slow start, with neither team scoring in the first quarter.
But Ryan didn't require much time after that, connecting with receiver Marvin Hall on a 47-yard touchdown.
And then in the fourth quarter, with the Falcons nursing a 13-6 lead, five straight Ryan completions softened up the Giants' front line ... allowing for Tevin Coleman to blow through the entire defense for a 30-yard touchdown run.
It was easily Atlanta's longest run of the evening; but it also came at a perfect time, giving the Falcons enough cushion to withstand the Giants' valiant, but ultimately futile charge in the end.
Julio Jones emerged as the Falcons' offensive star, catching nine of 12 targets for 104 yards.
That's the good news.
On the down side, Jones' regular-season touchdown drought has now reached 12 straight games.
But alas, the individual honors don't hold much water on this night.
After the bye, the Falcons will encounter two schizophrenic opponents on the road–the NFC East-leading Redskins and vastly improved Browns.
