A quarter-by-quarter look at the Falcons’ 23-20 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneerss at the Georgia Dome before 70,524 fans on Sunday.
FIRST QUARTER
Big play 1: Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones was running downfield for a big gain when Tampa Bay linebacker Kwon Alexander, a rookie from LSU, stripped the ball away. The Bucs got a field goal after the turnover and that set the tone for the afternoon.
Big play 2: Falcons rookie wide receiver Justin Hardy, who was making his debut, made the first catch of his NFL career on the last play of the first quarter. On third-and-8 from Atlanta's 31, Hardy jumped to haul in a Matt Ryan pass for a 12-yard gain. Hardy, a fourth-round pick from East Carolina, was active for the first time this season because of hamstring injuries to Leonard Hankerson and Nick Williams.
Turning point: Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan's red-zone woes continued against Tampa Bay. On second down from Tampa Bay's 6-yard, Ryan's pass into the end zone was intercepted by Alexander, but the play was nullified by a penalty.
Takeaway: The Falcons moved the ball at will but couldn't function in the red zone.
Score: Falcons 3, Tampa Bay 3.
SECOND QUARTER
Big play: The Falcons drove to Tampa Bay's 4 before center Mike Person skidded a shot gun snap off the turf and to his left. Ryan tried to pick the ball up instead of falling on it and Tampa Bay defensive end Jacquies Smith ended up with the ball to kill a drive that almost surely would have netted points.
Turning point: After the gift from Person, the Bucs put together a 10-play, 72-yard drive to get in position for a 23-yard field goal by Connor Barth to put the Bucs up 6-3.
Takeaway: Turnovers continued to haunt the Falcons. After Person's poor snap, Ryan tossed an interception to Alexander with 42 seconds left in the quarter.
Score: Bucs 13, Falcons 3.
THIRD QUARTER
Big play: On first-and-10 from Tampa Bay's 26, rookie quarterback Jameis Winston tried to hit wide receiver Mike Evans deep. Falcons cornerback Desmond Trufant was called for pass interference. It was a 39-yard penalty that moved the ball down to Atlanta's 25. Trufant had consecutive pass interference penalties and was injured on the second.
Turning point: Five plays after the Trufant penalty,Winston slammed into the end zone on a keeper from 4 yards out to put the Bucs up 20-3. The Falcons, on life support, countered with a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive. Ryan tossed a 7-yard pass to tight end Jacob Tamme.
Takeaway: The Falcons have become a turnover machine. They are not handling simple things like the center-quarterback exchange and the quarterback-running back handoffs.
Score: Bucs 20, Falcons 10.
FOURTH QUARTER
Big play: On fourth-and-1 from Atlanta's 43, Devonta Freeman slammed over right tackle for a 2-yard gain to keep the drive alive. The 14-play, 77-yard drive stalled at the 6 and Bryant added a field goal to make it 20-13 with 4:56 left.
Turning point: Fourth-and-1 from Tampa Bay's 40 with 2:13 to play, the Falcons' defense came up with a stop on Winston to get Ryan the ball with 1:52 to play. Ryan tossed an 8-yard TD pass to Julio Jones with 17 seconds left to force overtime.
Takeaway: Send Lovie Smith a thank you card for not punting with the game on the line.
Score: Bucs 20, Falcons 20.
OVERTIME
Winning drive: The Bucs put together a 15-play, 68-yard drive that took 7:08 off the clock. Barth kicked a 31-yard field goal to give them the lead. The Bucs stopped the Falcons at midfield.
Final score: Bucs 23, Falcons 20.
