Thanks to the Atlanta Falcons, the 1972 Miami Dolphins can pop their champagne bottles.
There will be no undefeated team this season as the Falcons stunned the previously undefeated Carolina Panthers 20-13 behind a gutsy performance by quarterback Matt Ryan before 70,981 fans on Sunday at a raucous Georgia Dome.
The Panthers pummeled the Falcons 38-0 on Dec. 13 and this was their rematch.
“We looked at this game as a measuring stick for us,” Falcons coach Dan Quinn said. “I wanted to really see how we would respond after our ball game up there a couple of weeks ago and we certainly did. We knew it was going to be a very tough matchup.”
The Falcons improved to 8-7. The Panthers dropped to 14-1. The 1972 Dolphins, who went 17-0, will remain in the modern day annals as the only team to be an undefeated NFL champion.
Here are the five things we learned from the game:
1. Ryan took a pounding. Ryan, who tossed his 200th career touchdown pass, took a licking and kept on ticking. Ryan was under relentless pressure from the Panthers. He took hits but kept coming back for more.
Panthers safety Kurt Coleman nailed him on the last play of the first quarter that set up Devonta Freeman’s 4-yard touchdown run.
Ryan appeared hurt on his left side in the waist and hip area.
Later in the third quarter, Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis nailed him from the right side. On the next play, Ryan got out of the pocket and threw the ball up for Julio Jones, who caught it and scored on a 70-yard play.
On the first hit, Ryan could have gone into a slide after gaining the first down but instead took a big hit from Coleman on his left side at the 4-yard line. When the period ended after the play Ryan walked gingerly to the sideline while holding his left side. Trainers attended to Ryan during the break before he returned to the huddle to start the second period.
Ryan appeared to be roughed up again later in the period when Kawann Short sacked him for a 7-yard loss. Ryan winced while flexing his left wrist but stayed in the game.
But he never left the game as he completed 23 of 30 passes for 306 yards and no interceptions. He finished with a passer rating 119.6, his highest of the season.
“I feel great,” Ryan said. “I thought that was a really good team win. My body feels good. Just a gutty performance across the board.”
2. Balanced attack. With the Tevin Coleman sidelined by a concussion, running back Devonta Freeman had to carry most of the load.
The Falcons were able to maintain that balance, but Ryan was still under a great deal of duress.
Freeman rushed 22 times for 73 yards and a touchdown. The Falcons ran the ball 30 times and attempted 30 passes.
3. Jones greater than Norman. Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones got the best of cornerback Josh Norman.
Jones was able to get open over the middle, away from Norman’s safety help for most of the game.
Also, Jones made a spectacular catch on a 70-yard catch-and-run that gave the Falcons a 14-10 lead. The Pro Bowl receiver finished with seven catches for 178 yards.
4. Center snap a problem. Another bad snap. With the Falcons on the move and a chance to build on their 14-10 lead, center Mike Person had a bad snap back to Ryan that the Panthers recovered.
On third-and-10 from Carolina’s 37, the snap shot back to the right of Ryan. He tried to recover it but Norman beat him to it and appeared headed for a touchdown. Left guard Andy Levitre hustled back to make the tackle.
The defense held up and forced a field goal to make it 14-13.
5. Beasley with key sack strip. First-round pick Vic Beasley made a sack of Newton and knocked the ball loose with just more than a minute to play. Defensive end Adrian Clayborn recovered to end Carolina's last-ditch threat.
“I looked at everybody’s eyes and man, and everybody was looking like ‘we’ll get it done,’ ” linebacker O’Brien Schofield said.
