Keys to Falcons win over Tampa Bay

By D. Orlando Ledbetter

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

1. Before the Falcons scored their game-winning touchdown, Tampa Bay called timeout. The Falcons were already at the line of scrimmage, so Tampa Bay got a peek at their formation. Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez were flanked to Chris Redman's left. Eric Weems and Michael Jenkins were flanked to the right and Jason Snelling was in the backfield. The Bucs' didn't adjust their alignment and stayed in the same defense. Redman, who was in the shotgun formation, said the safety was cheating over towards Gonzalez's side, which meant that White would have man coverage.  With Gonzalez moving to the post along with a crowd of Tampa defenders, a hole opened up for White to get inside of Tampa Bay cornerback Doug Roberson. White came down with the catch. The play was reviewed. "I knew I had caught the ball, I didn't care what they were doing," White said.

2. The Falcons continued to play musical chairs at cornerback and got burnt again. Rookie Christopher Owens became the fourth player to start at the left cornerback position this season. It's been a problem spot since Brian Williams was lost for the season to a knee injury and placed on injured reserve on Oct. 20. Tye Hill and Brent Grimes have started at the position, but both struggled with coverage. Owens and right corner Chris Houston were replaced by Hill and Grimes in the second quarter. Hill was promptly beaten by Antonio Bryant on a 42-yard touchdown reception. Owens seemed to hold up well and was never really targeted by Tampa quarterback Josh Freeman.

3. The Falcons rushing attack was expected to receive a boost with the return of running backs Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood. The Bucs entered the game with the league's lowest ranked rushing defense, giving ups 168.9 yards per game. The Falcons could muster only 35 yards in the first half.  Turner left the game with 33 yards on 12 carries after re-injuring the right ankle. He was able to walk off the field under his own power, but only after the training staff worked on the ankle that was originally injured against Carolina. He didn't play last week against the New York Giants. The Falcons were held to 75 yards rushing on 26 carries. Norwood finished with 22 yards in six carries but had also two catches for 28 yards and a touchdown.

By the numbers

• 93.9 -- Total yards below Tampa Bay's league-worst rush defense average (168.9) that the Falcons were held.

• 27 -- Backup quarterback Chris Redman threw his last pass in a regular season game 27 games ago. He took two snaps earlier this year against San Francisco and did not play in 17 games last season.

• 45 -- Kicker Jason Elam, who had missed 34- and 35-yard field goal attempts in the last two games, banged home a 45-yarder with room to spare in the second quarter. He then missed a 43-yarder in the fourth quarter.

• 15 -- Matt Ryan completed 2 of 3 passes for 15 yards before leaving the game with a toe injury.

• 2:07 -- The elapsed time on the Falcons' game-winning 59-yard touchdown drive.

• 89.8 -- Chris Redman's quarterback rating.

Etc.

• The Falcons captains for the coin toss were Tyson Clabo, Kroy Biermann, John Abraham, Jonathan Babineaux and Roddy White.

• The Falcons held Tampa Bay to 3-for12 on third down conversions (25 percent), the lowest rate for an opponent this season.

• Running back Jerious Norwood had a 18-yard gain in the second quarter, his longest of the season.

• Tight end Tony Gonzalez increased his streak for consecutive games with a reception to 142.

Injury report

• Quarterback Matt Ryan left the game after the first offensive series with a toe injury.

• Right guard Harvey Dahl left the game in the first half with an ankle and Achilles injury. He was replaced by Brett Romberg.

• Running back Michael Turner re-injured his right ankle and left the game in the third quarter.

• Left tackle Sam Baker left the game in the first half with multiple injures.