Surging Falcons shock Rams behind Bijan Robinson and a dominant defensive performance
Atlanta has won three in a row since being eliminated from the playoffs. Monday night, the Rams were the unlikely victim.
ATLANTA — Atlanta Falcons coach Raheem Morris might have saved his job Monday night, and if he did, he has his defense to thank. And Bijan Robinson, of course.
The vacation-bound Falcons shocked the playoffs-bound Rams, 27-24, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on the strength of another remarkable effort from Robinson, two 50-plus yard field goals from Zane Gonzalez — including the game-winner with 21 seconds remaining — and one of the most unlikely defensive performances of the season.
“The defense was killing it today. Sensational,” said Gonzalez, who hit from 51 yards to provide the final margin. “It was fun to watch. That offense is crazy good, and the defense did their job.”
It did more than that. Atlanta (7-9) bullied the Rams into their second-worst performance of the season based on EPA per play (minus-.11). The Falcons intercepted Matthew Stafford three times after Stafford entered the game with just five all season.
Safety Xavier Watts had two of those interceptions to give him five for the season, the most by any rookie in the league this year and enough to tie Deion Sanders for the Falcons’ rookie record.
“Deion is an all-time great so being in the same category as Deion is pretty cool,” Watts said. “It’s a pretty cool accomplishment. Something to be proud of. Matthew Stafford is a great player. It was an honor to be able to take advantage of him tonight.”
Veteran safety Jessie Bates also had an interception, which he returned 34 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter, and the Falcons sacked Stafford three times to up their season-total to 53, just two shy of the franchise’s single-season record.
“One of the keys coming into this week was get him off the spot, make him uncomfortable,” Watts said.
Atlanta also made wide receiver Puka Nacua uncomfortable. Nacua entered the game with the second-most receiving yards in the league but finished with five catches for 47 yards.
“The defensive staff did a great job limiting a great football player,” Morris said.
The win may prove pivotal for Morris, who is in his second season in Atlanta and acknowledged that his job status was shaky after being eliminated from the playoffs with a Week 14 loss to Seattle. The Falcons are 3-0 since that game.
“I think all the wins are big,” he said. “I think this one might be a bigger magnitude because of the team we were playing against and the things they are capable of doing and the things people think they can do moving forward.”
Robinson carried the offense with 229 yards from scrimmage, including a career-high 195 yards on the ground. He broke William Andrews’ record for single-season scrimmage yards with the performance, and leads the NFL with 2,255 yards from scrimmage. Saquon Barkley (2,283 last season) is the only player in the last five years to have more.