ATLANTA – No Lamar Jackson.
Well, it’s a good thing the Baltimore Ravens brought Derrick Henry, Kyle Hamilton and Tyler "Snoop" Huntley to pick up the slack as their star quarterback nurses an ankle injury.
The Ravens (4-1) stung the Atlanta Falcons in overtime, 30-23, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, scoring the game’s final 15 points and ending it with Hamilton’s pick of Tua Tagovailoa.
Huntley? Dating to last season, he’s 3-0 starting in the place of Jackson.
Here are winners and losers from the Ravens' overtime win over the Falcons on "Sunday Night Football":
WINNERS
Tyler Huntley
In this year of the Backup Quarterback, who has a better backup than Baltimore? Huntley, aka, "Snoop" proved his worth again as Lamar Jackson’s sub. And he was at his best in crunch time, flawlessly
leading the Ravens on a 71-yard game-tying TD drive in the fourth quarter, then a 14-play, 68-yard TD drive in overtime. Huntley was 24-of-32 for 201 yards, with 2 TDs – and no turnovers. And yes, Jackson, was surely proud of his understudy.
Derrick Henry
The Ravens' star running back upstaged his counterpart, Bijan Robinson, on his own turf. Henry took a lot of the load off Huntley by doing what Henry does. He carried 24 times for 102 yards, and scored an 18-yard TD on his only pass reception.
Kyle Hamilton
Baltimore’s big play safety, an Atlanta-area native, came home and sealed the deal with interception of Tua Tagovailoa in overtime.
Jessie Bates III
Atlanta’s savvy safety scored the game’s first touchdown, scooping a Mark Andrews fumble and motoring 36 yards to the end zone in the first quarter. Late in the half, Bates also made a key play that might have avoided a disaster. It came on a third-and-1, when Ravens quarterback Tyler Huntley ran a sneak on a "rush-mush" expected to go for a yard or two. When no one tackled him, Huntley bounced outside and kept going for 15 yards – until Bates clipped him down from behind. Baltimore wound up with a field goal, but it was almost much worse for the Falcons.
Kyle Pitts Sr
For the first time this season, the Falcons tight end struck paydirt. Pitts scored Atlanta’s first offensive touchdown of the game, a 5-yarder, off a skinny post. And he might have shaken Mercedes-Benz Stadium with a thunderous spike that seemingly made a statement about his agreement with the touchdown. In June, the Falcons signed Pitts to a three-year, $53 million extension. But through four games, he was virtually non-existent in the passing game with just 5 catches on 9 targets. At least can now chalk up another TD. And in catching all 5 of his targets (42 yards), Pitts matched his total from the first four games of the season.
Tyler Loop
The Ravens kicker connected on two 51-yard field goals, in addition to a 21-yarder, to continue his hot streak. It’s been a good bounce back for Loop, whose rookie year ended in January when he missed the field goal against the Steelers that could have lifted Baltimore to the AFC North crown. So far this season, Loop is a perfect 5-for-5 on field goal attempts from 50 yards or more.
Jake Matthews
When the Falcons left tackle was knocked out of last Monday night's game at New Orleans due to a groin injury, it seemed to jeopardize his chance to make a milestone 200th consecutive start. Well, no sweat. Or fast healer. Matthews was in the lineup again, extending the NFL’s longest active streak. The 13-year vet still has a ways to go, though, to claim the longest Iron Man streak in his family. His Hall of Fame-decorated father, Bruce, started 229 consecutive games. And Jake also couldn’t haul his first NFL touchdown off a tackle-eligible play in the third quarter.
John Abraham
At halftime, the former edge rusher was inducted as the 15th member of the Falcons’ Ring of Honor. Abraham, who ranks 14th on the NFL's all-time sack list with 133 ½, played seven seasons in Atlanta. He holds the franchise’s record with 68 ½ sacks – 19 of which were strip-sacks.
LOSERS
Michael Penix, Jr.
It went downhill fast for the Falcons quarterback. Then it got worse as he was knocked out the game with a rib injury. Uh-oh.
Tua Tagovailoa
The Falcons really needed their backup quarterback to come up big in overtime with Penix sidelined and the Ravens up a touchdown. Needed or wanted, that didn’t happen. Tagovailoa’s second pass of OT, underthrown over the middle for Drake London, was picked off by Kyle Hamilton. Ballgame.
Mark Andrews
It was a rough night for the Ravens’ usually reliable tight end. In the first quarter, Andrews fumbled after hauling in a pass over the middle. It turned into Atlanta’s first touchdown as Jessie Bates III ran back the turnover 36 yards. In the third quarter, a wide-open Andrews dropped a pass on a two-point conversion attempt that could have tied the game. In the fourth quarter, Andrews had a third-down pass swatted out of his hands by Xavier Watts.
The paying customers
As usual, it was a rocking time inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, one of the NFL’s most festive venues. Yet something was missing on Sunday night: Lamar Jackson. After suffering an ankle injury the previous Sunday, the Ravens' star quarterback missed his first start of the season. The team is hopeful that Jackson, off to a strong start with new coordinator Declan Doyle, will return to the lineup next Sunday at Cleveland. To the fans who hoped to get a glimpse of Jackson in Atlanta? Sorry. Then again, all in all, nobody could complain that it wasn’t a competitive game.
Falcons cornerbacks named Mike
Veteran cornerback Mike Hughes was victimized twice in the open field on Baltimore’s game-tying drive late in the fourth quarter. He missed a tackle that allowed Rashod Bateman to spin forward for a 20-yard gain. Then when the Ravens called for a direct snap to Derrick Henry on a 2-point conversion attempt, Hughes was left to stare down the diesel of a running back on the corner. Bad matchup. Henry bulled his way into the end zone to tie the game. Then there was Mike Ford Jr. He was beaten by Devontez Walker for a 7-yard touchdown with 40 seconds on the clock in the fourth quarter. It set up the 2-point conversion that tied the game.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Snoop, King Henry pick up slack. Michael Penix struggles: SNF winners and losers
