After winning the coin toss, the Falcons, who were confident in their defense, elected to defer their choice until the second half.
But the defense, which entered the game with 16 missed tackles, opened poorly.
The Cowboys took an early 7-0 lead after a two-play, 80-yard touchdown drive. Safety Ricardo Allen missed a tackle on Joseph Randle’s 28-yard run.
Cornerback Robert Alford was called for grabbing a facemask and on the next player, Randle ran through tackle attempts from Justin Durant and Paul Worrlow to score on a 37-yard touchdown run.
After three-and-out by the Atlanta offense, the Cowboys needed eight plays to drive 77 yards for another touchdown. Randle’s 1-yard touchdown run put the Cowboys up 14-0.
The Cowboys were averaging 14.2 yards per play on their first two drives of the game.
The Falcons missed nine or 10 tackles against the Giants and missed nine against the Eagles, according to head coach Dan Quinn.
Before facing Dallas, the Falcons had missed 16 tackles according to profootballfocus.com.
Here’s their breakdown: weakside linebacker Justin Durant (five missed tackles), middle linebacker Paul Worrilow (three), strong safety William Moore (two), free safety Ricardo Allen (two), linebacker O’Brian Schofield (one), linebacker Kroy Biermann (one), nickel back Phillip Adams (one) and cornerback Desmond Trufant (one).
Quinn wants to cut those numbers in half down to four or five missed tackles, but they have at least three early against the Cowboys.
Durant, who played the past two seasons with Dallas, leads the Falcons in tackles after two games with 18.
On their second possession, the Falcons answered with an 11-play, 80-yard touchdown drive. Running back Devonta Freeman scored on a 3-yard touchdown run. Fullback Patrick DiMarco threw a nice lead-block to clear Freeman’s path.
About the Author
