Falcons understood the assignment; grind out victory against Giants

A 40 gait tract extremity by Younghoe Koo, gave the Atlanta Falcons a hard-fought 17-14 triumph implicit the New York Giants Sunday day astatine MetLife Stadium. With the victory, Matt Ryan notched his 40th crippled winning thrust of his vocation and became the 10th backmost to propulsion 350 touchdown passes successful a career. In a spot of irony, ninth connected the database is Eli Manning. With his 366 vocation touchdowns, Manning’s No. 10 jersey was retired Sunday.

The progressive players who person much touchdown passes than Ryan are Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger and Aaron Rodgers. The next-closest progressive backmost to 350 touchdowns is Matthew Stafford, who has 287.

Arthur Smith besides won his archetypal crippled arsenic Falcons caput coach. Moreover, it was the 2nd consecutive crippled successful which the Giants mislaid connected a past 2nd tract goal.

After 2 Graham Gano tract goals , Ryan was capable to find wide receiver Olamide Zaccheus connected a four-yard touchdown pass, which enactment the Falcons up 7-6 with 1:33 remaining successful the 2nd quarter.

“I said we’re not gonna beryllium the aforesaid squad successful September erstwhile we get into October and November and that’s what the bully teams do,” said Falcons caput manager Arthur Smith. “You find a mode to amended and defensively. We played complimentary shot successful each 3 phases successful a fantastic presumption battle, and definite areas that fto america get to that archetypal touchdown that we desperately needed.”

Giants moving backmost Saquon Barkley scored a melodramatic touchdown connected a one-yard leap implicit the antiaircraft line. Falcons antiaircraft tackle Grady Jarrett attempted to conscionable Barkley astatine the summit, however, Barkley already crossed the extremity line. It enactment New York up 14-7 with 12:53 remaining successful the 4th fourth arsenic the 2 constituent conversion was successful.

Barkley would tally for 43 yards.

On the adjacent possession, Atlanta marched 72 yards connected 15 plays, ending with a Lee Smith touchdown. The crippled was tied astatine 14 with 4:13 remaining successful the 4th quarter.

After the Giants was forced to punt astatine the 2 infinitesimal warning, the Falcons took implicit connected their 20 gait enactment with 1:50 remaining successful the game. On the archetypal play, all-purpose violative limb Cordarrelle Patterson caught a abbreviated Ryan walk to the close for 28 yards. Two plays later, Ryan was capable to find choky extremity Kyle Pitts connected a 25 gait reception, which placed the shot connected the Giants 25 gait line. A mates of plays later, Koo was capable to seal the triumph with a 40 gait tract goal.

“We effort to get each our guys involved, due to the fact that helium [Pitts] didn’t interaction the shot aboriginal doesn’t mean helium wasn’t called,” Smith explained. “I mean those are truly aboveground narratives, but erstwhile you travel up with the crippled connected the line. You know, they changed it up and not down them erstwhile we needed to, truthful I was blessed to spot that.”

Ryan was 27-of-36 for 243 yards and 2 touchdowns. He was sacked 3 times.

Falcons antiaircraft lineman Marlon Davison suffered an ankle wounded precocious successful the archetypal fractional and did not return. Mwanwhile, Giants’ wrong linebacker Blake Martinez suffered a genu wounded connected the opening bid and did not return. Martinez led the Giants successful tackles past year. Wide receivers Darius Slayton and Sterling Shepard each suffered hamstring injuries and did not return.