The Atlanta Falcons entered the “Monday Night Football” showdown seeking a win after losing four straight games. A trip to Las Vegas to face the (2-11) Raiders proved to be the remedy.
It was also another opportunity for Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins to find his groove after throwing 0 touchdowns and 8 interceptions in the last four games.
Cousins appeared to get back on track in the first quarter after finding Drake London who scored on a 30 yard pass for the games first touchdown.
But things would go down hill from there in terms of the Falcons passing game as Cousins threw an interception in the second quarter. He would finish with 112 yards passing on 11 completions and 17 attempts.
The Falcons depended on running backs Bijan Robinson (125 yards rushing) and Tyler Allgeier who kept the Raiders defense on the field with several breakaway runs.
In a game where both offenses struggled, the Raiders would have an opportunity to win it during the final minute of play as former Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder led the Raiders on a final drive. Ridder connected on multiple pass plays before a hail marry attempt was intercepted by Falcons safety Jessie Bates in the end zone, leading to a 15-9 victory for the Falcons.
Although the win put the Falcons at 7-7 and only one game behind the Tampa Bay Bucs for a playoff spot, Cousins is still having issues recapturing the magic that he showed during the first half of the season.
While some sports pundits and fans have called for the Falcons to start rookie Michael Penix Jr., head coach Raheem Morris has yet to reveal if he’s ready to make a change at quarterback.
“We got everybody on our roster for a reason and we’ve got so much to get better at,” Morris said when asked if Penix will soon start. “Those things will always be discussed. That’s just the nature of football. It’s just so heavily talked about it. The quarterback position. Our mentality is to find a way to win the next game.”
Morris is looking forward to facing the New York Giants this Sunday in Atlanta. To make the playoffs, the team would likely need to win all of the three remaining games.
“We take it one game at a time,” Morris said. “We got a short week. We can get back in the lab. We got to find ways to fix things we did wrong tonight. Come out and try to get another win.”
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