Falcons rewind: Several opportunities for victory blown

FLOWERY BRANCH -- The film review of the Falcons' 15-9 lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers was not pleasant viewing for the team.

There were several plays that could have turned the game around in the Falcons' favor. They did not exploit a quarterback, Dennis Dixon, who was making his second NFL start and was having an erratic day passing. Not that Dixon didn't give them chances.

With the scored tied 6-6 and 13:19 left in the game, nickel back Christopher Owens had a chance to give the offense a short field when he got his hands on a pass at Pittsburgh's 27. But Owens failed to make the interception.

Mike Peterson accepted one of Dixon's the gifts earlier in the game to stop a promising Pittsburgh drive but six plays later, Matt Bryant missed a 46-yard field goal. Later, John Abraham had another Dixon pass bounce off his hands, while he was dropping in coverage on a fire-zone blitz.

The Steelers, on the other hand, made those little plays, like Hines Ward's juggling catch on a 24-yard gain one play after Owens' bobble, and were able to pull out the win.

Here's a rewind look at five key plays from the game.

THE CATCH

Second down, 11 yards to go, Falcons' ball on Pittsburgh's 41 with 11:26 left in the third quarter.

Formation: Falcons are in a single back formation with one tight end and three receivers.

Play: Tight end Tony Gonzalez is on the right side with Harry Douglas and Roddy White outside of him. Douglas goes to the flat. White runs upfield. Gonzalez releases up the seam, makes an outside move and then turns back inside where the pass in waiting for him at the 27.

Result: He rumbled down to the 21 for 20 yards on his 1,000th career catch. Four plays later, Bryant kicked a 39-yard field goal for a 6-3 Atlanta lead.

Gonzalez: "I was getting bumped around pretty good out there. They bumped me off the line of scrimmage a lot."

BIERMANN'S BIG SACK

Third down, 14 yards to go, Steelers' ball on Pittsburgh's 35, with 1:59 left in the fourth quarter.

Formation: 3-3-5, showing a soft zone with just three players rushing.

Play: Biermann is at left end, John Abraham is at right end and rookie Corey Peters is at nose tackle. Biermann beats tackle Flozell Adams around the corner and throws his right shoulder into tight end Heath Miller who tries to block him. The force of Biermann's hit knocks Miller backwards and clears a path to the quarterback.

Result: Quarterback sack, loss of 10 yards. Steelers were forced to punt.

Biermann: "I got a move on [Miller] and I was able to get to the quarterback."

POLAMALU'S INTERCEPTION

First down, 10 yards to go, Falcons' ball on Atlanta's 21 with 1:45 left in the fourth quarter.

Formation: Shotgun with one back, one tight end and three receivers.

Play: Gonzalez is tight on the right with Douglas and White flanked outside of him. Brian Finneran is flanked left. All three receivers on the right stream up field. Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu ignores Gonzalez and Douglas and jumps White's square out. Fox analyst Jim Mora thought quarterback Matt Ryan stared down White and tipped off Polamalu where he was going to throw.

Result: Interception, Steelers took possession on the Falcons 30.

White: "I can't see that guy. He's all the way over in the middle of the field. He's a play-maker. Just when they needed a big play, he came up with it. He does stuffs like that. He aborts what he's supposed to do and just goes to where he thinks the ball is going to go."

Ryan: "I thought I made a pretty good throw. Against him, you have to be perfect. ... He made a great play."

THE HOLDING CALLS IN OVERTIME

Pittsburgh kicking off to start overtime.

Formation: 6-3-2 kickoff return formation.

Play: Ovie Mughelli is deep to provide a block for returner Eric Weems. Pittsburgh's Anthony Madison jumps inside of Mughelli on his way to Weems. Mughelli reaches out with his left arm and brings Madison to the ground. He is called for holding.

Result: Instead of starting at the 24, the Falcons start first-and-10 from their 9. The drive is later setback by a holding call on left tackle Sam Baker, his second of the game, as he had his hands full with Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison.

Mughelli: "He was definitely inside of me and then he made a great move to cut in front of my face. I tried to keep my hands on him. I just kept my hands on him too long."

MENDENHALL'S WALK-OFF SPRINT

First down, 10 yards to go, Steelers' ball on the 50 with 12:36 left in overtime.

Formation: 4-3 base defense.

Play: The Steelers send Ward in motion to the right and cornerback Brent Grimes comes across the defense with him. On the snap, every Falcon steps into his gap except for Grimes, who hesitates before he jumps outside. Pittsburgh running back Rashard Mendenhall reads him and cuts to an inside crease. Grimes tries to rally to the ball, but gets caught up in Steeler tight end David Johnson's block on Mike Peterson. By design, Grimes was to meet Mendenhall in the hole. Erik Coleman, who is on the other side of the field covering speedster wide receiver Mike Wallace, gives chase in vain.

Result: Mendenhall had 50-yard overtime walk-off touchdown run.

Biermann: "To me, it felt like it went outside of me. Obviously it was a miss-fit* because nobody was there to make a tackle. Somebody is usually supposed to be there."