Rewind: Falcons have wide-ranging issues

In a battle of testy NFC South teams, the Buccaneers prevailed by swallowing up the last 4:06 with the aid of a Corey Peters’ offsides penalty to secure the 16-13 victory and snap the Falcons’ five-game winning streak.

What we learned

1. Offensive line has real problems: Center Todd McClure returned to the starting lineup after recovering from knee surgery. Second-year man Joe Hawley started the first two games of the season. There was hope that McClure, the savvy 13-year veteran, would help the line with better pass-protection calls. But on the third play of the game, quarterback Matt Ryan was sacked by linebacker Dekoda Watson and fumbled. The Bucs' relentless pass rush did not ease up as they finished with four sacks and four quarterback hits.

2. Falcons can throw it deep: The Falcons flashed a lethal two-play drive in the fourth quarter to close the gap to 16-10. Ryan tossed a 49-yard pass to rookie wide receiver Julio Jones and on the next play hit tight end Tony Gonzalez in the back of the endzone for a 10-yard touchdown. The drive left some wondering why they haven't flashed that quick-strike combination more often? Ryan passed for 330 yards, but some of the yards were hollow because they didn't lead to points. A promising drive right before halftime was halted by an interception by Ronde Barber. The Falcons had 58 empty passing yards in that drive. The fourth-quarter drive that stalled at Tampa Bay's 7 after a failed fourth-down pass had 41 hollow passing yards. That's 99 yards with no points to show for it.

3. Slow starts are problematic: The Falcons have not scored a touchdown on their first drives of any game this season. Against the Bucs, the Falcons' opening drive ended with a sack/fumble. Against the Eagles the first drive ended with a punt. The first drive against Chicago ended with a field goal. In both of their losses, the Falcons have trailed 16-3 at halftime.  "We have not gotten out of the chute like we would like," Falcons coach Mike Smith said.

Injury report

Running back Jason Snelling (head) and cornerback Dunta Robinson (neck) were injured in the game. Snelling did not return to the action, but Robinson did. Also, left tackle Sam Baker was led to the x-ray room in Raymond James Stadium after the game, but it is not known what body part was getting x-rayed. Linebacker Stephen Nicholas, who injured his calf in practice on Friday, did not play against Tampa Bay. Cornerback Kelvin Hayden (hamstring) and defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux (knee) were also inactive against the Bucs.

The numbers game

75.7

Quarterback Matt Ryan’s passer rating as he completed 26 of 47 passes for 330 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

11

Weakside linebacker Sean Weatherspoon and middle linebacker Curtis Lofton team-leading tackle total.

50

The Falcons’ yards from seven penalties. They were the least penalized team in the league last season with just 58 infractions. They have 23 in three games. They are on pace to commit 121.6 penalties.

Sound bite

“I thought Julio did a good job. He made plays for us when we needed him to. He caught the ball and provided some really good run after the catch.”

--Quarterback Matt Ryan on rookie wide receiver Julio Jones.