The Atlanta Falcons led the Baltimore Ravens for most of tonight's game. However, their defense just couldn't get the stops they needed in the fourth quarter and overtime.
With starting quarterback Michael Penix knocked out late by a rib injury, Tua Tagovailoa was tasked with Atlanta's last chance to score, but he threw an interception to Kyle Hamilton, sealing a 30-23 win for Baltimore.
Here's a quick review of how the Falcons did on offense, defense and special teams in Week 5.
Offense
Falcons running back Bijan Robinson was relatively quiet in the first half, as the Ravens defended him far better than the Packers and the Saints did the last two games. At halftime he had 28 yards on five carries. It was an entirely different story coming out of the locker
room in the third quarter, though. That's when Robinson found his extra gear and started breaking off massive runs, including a 38-yarder and a sick forced missed tackle. In the end, Bijan posted 86 rushing yards on 17 carries (5.1 per attempt) but did not score a touchdown.
As for the passing game, things got off to a rocky start for Michael Penix, whose first few passes were off the mark - including one that probably should have been intercepted. Penix didn't get into a rhythm until late in the first half when he found Kyle Pitts on a screen play that went for 13 yards. Deep shots to Drake London for 25 yards and Jahan Dotson for 38 set up Pitts' first touchdown of the year. Penix ended the evening with a line of 19/32 for 240 yards, one touchdown and a 93.2 passer rating. Drake London led Atlanta with a game-high seven catches for 118 receiving yards.
Defense
It was also rough going early on for Atlanta's defense, which came into this matchup giving up just 48 rushing yards per game. Cornerback Mike Hughes deserves credit for not making a business decision and laying his body on the line to stop Henry at the goal line, saving a touchdown. Unfortunately, Hughes also whiffed on a couple of critical tackles on the Ravens' last possession of regulation.
That league-best rushing number went out the window pretty quick and Baltimore had 70+ yards on the ground by the end of the first quarter. In the end Derrick Henry racked up 102 rushing yards on 24 carries, plus a receiving touchdown and a clutch two-point conversion.
The Falcons did manage to score a rare defensive touchdown, with safety Jessie Bates III scooping up a fumble forced by Sydney Brown and running it all the way back for six. Bates also punched out a two-point conversion for Mark Andrews in the second half.
The Falcons' pass rush continues to get a lot of pressures - and this week they actually managed to convert some of them into sacks. Atlanta got to backup Ravens quarterback Tyler Huntley for three sacks and eight quarterback hits, plus another sack on Zay Flowers on a trick play.
Special Teams
For some reason rather than have rookie Zachariah Branch as their usual return specialist, the Falcons had veteran receiver Olamide Zaccheaus take over that role in the first half, with predictable results. Zaccheaus managed just 36 yards on two kickoff returns and nothing on his one punt return. Brian Robinson Jr. was better when he got his turn, posting a 40-yard return in the third quarter. Branch eventually got into the action, posting a 27-yard kick return to start overtime. Meanwhile, Nick Folk connected on all three of his field goals including a 48-yarder.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Instant Analysis: Falcons fall to Ravens in overtime on SNF
