Falcons wide receiver Roddy White will likely receive an envelope from the NFL office on Thursday.
That’s fine day around the league.
White said he couldn’t help himself when he got into a shouting match with Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman and wound up slapping him twice.
“We went back and forth,” said White, who returned to action after missing three games with ankle and hamstring injuries. “It was being competitive.”
White and Sherman feuded over the offseason. White got the best of Sherman in the NFC divisional round playoff game last season. Sherman responded that White should not have been rated as the 39th best player in the league on an NFL Network’s countdown.
But after Sunday’s outburst, things simmered down the rest of the game.
“They’ve got a lot of good players over there,” White said after Seattle’s 33-10 victory. “They are a good football team. They are 9-1 for a reason. It was all competitiveness, just going out there and getting after it.”
The Falcons were hoping for a boost from White’s return. He managed just one catch for 20 yards and was targeted on four plays.
“It felt pretty good,” White said. “I was hoping to get a win, but it felt good to be back out there.”
Harry Douglas led the Falcons with seven catches for 49 yards. Tight end Tony Gonzalez, who sustained a left toe injury, had three catches for 29 yards. He later returned to the action.
“We were trying to get him involved,” quarterback Matt Ryan said of White. “We got him the catch early and he ran a great route. I thought that he played pretty well for us today.”
White is uncertain what is wrong with the offense, which has failed to gain 300 yards in any of the past four games. The Falcons managed a season-low 226 yards against Seattle, following 289 yards (vs. Carolina), 292 (Arizona) and 291 (Tampa Bay).
“We haven’t been fully together all year,” White said. “A lot of things haven’t been together because we haven’t had everybody out there.”
Jackson stopped: Running back Steven Jackson was held to 11 yards rushing on nine carries.
On their first three drives of the game, the Falcons tried to feature Jackson against a Seattle defense that had given up 205 and 200 rushing yards in their last two games.
Jackson has not had much success over his career against Seattle. In 17 previous games against the Seahawks, Jackson had 293 attempts for 1,137 yards (3.88 yards per carry), eight touchdowns and a 4-13 record, all recorded with St. Louis.
He has now been held to 75 yards or less in 13 of 18 games against the Seahawks.
Moore to appeal: Falcons safety William Moore is likely to receive his fourth fine of the season. He was called for a personal foul on a helmet-to-helmet hit against Seattle wide receiver Golden Tate in the first quarter.
“I’m going to definitely deal with it,” Moore said. “I can’t control how they view plays. I just have to keep flying around and playing football and hope they look at it and change it during the appeal. But four fines out of a couple games, that ain’t right.”
Johnson keeps ball: Atlanta rookie wide receiver Darius Johnson scored his first NFL touchdown Sunday.
“I got the first touchdown ball,” Johnson said. “I actually threw it, but one of my teammates went and got it for me.”
Gonzalez's jersey swap: After the game, Sherman hunted down Gonzalez and the two traded jerseys at midfield.
“That’s what happens when you’re an old guy and they know it’s your last year,” Gonzalez said. “He said, ‘I’m probably not going to see you for a while.’ He’s such a good player. He’s on his way. I’m glad I got his jersey.”
Baker scratched: Falcons left tackle Sam Baker, who's battling a balky left knee, was a surprise scratch and added to the inactive list.
Lamar Holmes started at left tackle and Jeremy Trueblood played right tackle.
Ryan was sacked twice and hit four times, and the line failed to open many holes for the running backs.
“I can only speak personally. I’ve never been through this and this is a maturing process,” center Peter Konz said. “We’ve got a lot of young guys and it’s a maturing process that might not see dividends now, but you will see dividends down the line.”
Running back Josh Vaughan, safety Kemal Ishmael, linebacker Thomas Howard, guard Harland Gunn, wide receiver Brian Robiskie and defensive end Cliff Matthews were the other Atlanta inactives.
Etc: Linebacker Paul Worrilow led the Falcons with 19 tackles. He also had 19 tackles last week against Carolina. … Kicker Matt Bryant made a season-long 53 yard field goal in the second quarter. Since joining the Falcons in 2009, he has connected on 10-of-11 kicks from 50 yards or more. … Linebacker Joplo Bartu finished the game with six tackles, including an 8-yard sack of Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson. He ranks second on the team with 3.5 sacks.
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