FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons spent their first full day as leaders of the NFC South in a reflective mode.
“It’s good to be in this spot at the midpoint of this season,” Falcons cornerback Isaiah Oliver told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday. “We also understand that we have to keep on getting better each week. Keep on getting some wins.”
The Falcons had a lengthy film session Monday after their thrilling 37-34 overtime victory over the Panthers on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The victory gave the Falcons sole possession of first place at 4-4. The Bucs and the Saints are 3-5, and the Panthers dropped to 2-6.
It was a less-than-perfect game as the Falcons gave up 478 total yards, threw two interceptions and had seven penalties for 64 yards.
“Everything is a little easier coming off getting a win,” Oliver said. “We just understood that we made a lot of mistakes in that game. We did a lot of things that we know we could have (done) better. We corrected them and will fix it for the next week.”
Here are five takeaways from the game:
1. Secondary plan: With top cornerback A.J. Terrell (hamstring) and safety Jaylinn Hawkins (concussion) out, the Falcons started Cornell Armstrong at cornerback and Dean Marlowe at safety.
Armstrong had played in 15 games with the Dolphins and 15 with the Texans. He made his first NFL start against the Panthers.
Both were solid, but Marlowe violated the “deeper than the deepest” receiver rule on D.J. Moore’s 62-yard touchdown grab. Linebacker Rashaan Evans tried to make a hustle play when he saw quarterback P.J. Walker launch the ball 67.8 yards, according to Next Gen Stats.
“I thought those guys played really well out there,” Oliver said. “Competing and making plays on the ball. I think we can fix up a few things techniques-wise, tackling for sure. If we would have done those things the right way, the yards and the stats would have looked more appropriate to how we played. But at the end of the day, we did get the win.”
Cornerback Darren Hall has been taking over for Casey Hayward, who is out for the season with a shoulder injury.
“We felt like we had a lot of depth in this room coming into this season,” Oliver said. “We knew if the time came, guys had to step up and make plays, that we’d be able to do that in our DB room. It shows that’s what we are capable of, and we’ve just got to keep it going.”
2. Caleb Huntley leads rushing attack: The Falcons’ running back committee of Tyler Allgeier, Caleb Huntley and Avery Williams continued to keep the rushing attack moving with Cordarrelle Patterson on injured reserve.
Huntley rushed for a career-high 91 yards on 16 carries against the Panthers.
The Falcons rushed 37 times for 167 yards.
“It felt good,” Huntley said Monday. “Honestly, I didn’t know it was a career high. I was just dialed into the game, making sure that we got the win, and I’m glad that we did.”
Huntley also had 16 carries in the win over the 49ers on Oct. 16.
“I’m just glad that I was kind of prepared enough to stay in there and handle things while (Patterson) has been gone,” Huntley said. “When he does come back, we know that’s going to be a great thing for this team. That’s another (weapon) that they have to look out for.”
Huntley busted loose for a 30-yard gain on his 11th carry against the Panthers.
“Wear defenses down and eventually they are going to get tired of tackling us,” Huntley said. “In that third or fourth quarter, they are going to try to arm tackle. That’s when you break free.”
His big run came in the fourth quarter and helped the Falcons take a 24-21 lead.
3. Marcus Mariota’s magic: The Falcons are learning to take the spectacular plays with the occasional misstep from quarterback Marcus Mariota.
In overtime, he tossed an interception that appeared to seal the Falcons’ fate. Thanks to Eddy Pineiro’s missed 32-yard field goal, Mariota got a second chance.
He escaped the pocket and broke free for a 30-yard gain to help get into range for kicker Younghoe Koo.
“I couldn’t be more proud of him, the player he is, and the guy he is as well,” Falcons left tackle Jake Matthews said. “He’s got that personality that you want to do really well for him just because of how well he takes care of us and the type of attitude he brings every day.”
The teams gets a boost from Mariota’s big plays. “Man, I couldn’t be happier he’s our quarterback, and I think he played great,” Matthews said.
4. Hat tip to Steve Wilks: Falcons coach Arthur Smith gave a hat tip to Panthers interim coach Steve Wilks after the game.
Wilks took over the Panthers after Matt Rhule was fired after going 1-4 this season.
“Proud of our team and the resiliency, and just want to give a lot of the credit to Steve Wilks,” Smith said. “That’s a tough situation to be in. He’s a (heck) of a coach, and I can’t give Carolina enough credit.”
The Panthers were coming off a 21-3 upset of the Bucs and had the Falcons on the ropes. A missed extra point from 47 yards and a missed 32-yard field goal foiled the Panthers’ bid.
“What he’s done as interim, that’s not easy,” Smith said. “Didn’t get a real long shot in Arizona, especially. That guy is a (heck) of a football coach. (I’ve) got to give Carolina and Steve Wilks a lot of credit.”
5. Injury report: Armstrong and Mike Ford were injured in the game but returned to the action.
“We came away pretty clean, thankfully,” Smith said. “A couple bumps and bruises, but pretty clean.”
Patterson, who was in the locker room Monday, could return from injured reserve and face the Chargers on Sunday.
Patterson, who posted a recent workout on social media, is itching to return.
“We’ll just talk to him and the doctors,” Smith said. “We’ll see what the plan is on Wednesday.”
If Terrell and Hawkins return, that would bolster the secondary against the Chargers, who feature quarterback Justin Herbert.
“I don’t have updates right now but hopeful,” Smith said. “We’ll see how it looks by Wednesday. Trending like they could be ready, they’ll be out there.”
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The Bow Tie Chronicles
Atlanta Falcons 2022 schedule
Sept. 11: Saints 27, Falcons 26
Sept. 18: Rams 31, Falcons 27
Sept. 25 Falcons 27, Seahawks 23
Oct. 2 Falcons 23, Browns 20
Oct. 9 Buccaneers 21, Falcons 15
Oct. 16 Falcons 28, 49ers 14
Oct. 23 Bengals 35, Falcons 17
Oct. 30 Falcons 37, Panthers 34 OT
Nov. 6 vs. Los Angeles Chargers, 1 p.m.
Nov. 10 at Carolina, 8:15 p.m.
Nov. 20 vs. Chicago, 1 p.m.
Nov. 27 at Washington, 1 p.m.
Dec. 4 vs. Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.
BYE WEEK
Dec. 18 at New Orleans, TBD
Dec. 24 at Baltimore, 1 p.m.
Jan. 1 vs. Arizona, 1 p.m.
Jan. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, TBD
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