Still seething from their embarrassing loss to New Orleans on national TV, the Falcons took out their angst on the Tampa Bay Bucs, beating them 45-24 Sunday at the Georgia Dome while improving to a No. 5 playoff seeding.
The victory by the Falcons, coupled with Green Bay’s 45-41 win over Detroit, helped them avoid another meeting with New Orleans. The Saints beat the Falcons twice this season, including a 45-16 shellacking the previous Monday.
The Falcons (10-6), who will face the New York Giants in the wild-card round of the NFC playoffs at 1 p.m. Sunday at MetLife Stadium, also recorded the first back-to-back 10-win seasons in franchise history.
“We wanted to bounce back strong,” said linebacker Curtis Lofton, who returned an interception 26 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter.
The Falcons, set to make their second consecutive playoff appearance for the first time in team history, will travel to play the NFC East champion.
“Everybody is excited about the opportunity to be back in the playoffs and have a chance to go to the Super Bowl,” said quarterback Matt Ryan, who’s 0-2 in the playoffs.
Looking to gather some momentum heading into the playoffs, the Falcons smothered the hapless Buccaneers (4-12), scoring on their first five possessions and had a 42-0 lead midway through the second quarter.
“We wanted to play our final regular-season game with a lot of energy and intensity,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “I thought we did that in all three phases of the game. We wanted to come out and set the tempo with our execution.”
In building the comfortable margin, running back Michael Turner, broke loose for 172 yards on 17 carries and scored two touchdowns. Overall, the Falcons rushed 38 times for 251 yards.
“It felt really good for us up front,” center Todd McClure said. “All of those guys were running the ball well. It’s going to be big for us having that momentum going into the playoffs.”
The first play of the game was a power run right up the middle, Turner ran for 26 yards, and that set the tone. The Falcons played as if they already were in postseason mode.
“That was our mindset all week,” McClure said. “The playoffs started for us today. This team was focused and I think it showed, especially in the first half.”
The Bucs added some token scores in the second half after the Falcons emptied their bench.
News of Green Bay’s win made its way to the Falcons’ sideline during the game.
“I think I became aware of it with about three minutes to go in the half,” Smith said.
Individual rewards were plentiful for the Falcons, too. Ryan, Turner and wide receiver Roddy White all etched their names into the team record book.
Ryan broke the Falcons’ single-season passing mark with a 48-yard touchdown pass to Julio Jones in the first quarter. The quarterback moved past Jeff George’s mark of 4,173 yards set in 1995. Ryan, who completed 6 of 9 passes for 106 yards and two touchdowns, threw for 4,177 yards this season.
“It’s obviously a great honor and something that is special,” Ryan said. “It’s not something that I get too hung up on. We’ve got a lot more important things ahead of us over the next couple of weeks.”
Turner broke Gerald Riggs 23-year club record for most rushing touchdowns. Turner scored on runs 1 and 81 yards, giving him 49 rushing TDs with the Falcons. Riggs had 47.
“It’s about time,” Riggs said.
White became the team’s all-team leader in yards receiving, passing Terance Mathis’ mark of 7,349 set in 1994-2001. White, who caught four passes for 69 yards, generated 7,374 yards receiving this season.
The Falcons now want to make some noise in the playoffs, after early exits last year and in 2008.
“If you look at our offense, we have a ton of weapons,” Lofton said. “When you look at our defense, we are right up there in the league with the best of them.”
The Falcons, upset by Green Bay 48-21 last year in the first round, have a newfound confidence as they return to the postseason.
“Last year is last year,” Lofton said. “You can’t always be looking in the past. We’re a good team. We are not the same team that we were last year. We’re ready to go.”
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