Falcons denied sweep of Saints because of 3 missed FGs and failures on pass defense

ATLANTA — It should be no surprise the Atlanta Falcons won't achieve perfection in their NFC South schedule.

Sunday's 20-17 loss at the New Orleans Saints provided reminders that the Falcons are far from a perfect team.

The Falcons (6-4) still hold a two-game lead over Tampa Bay in the NFC South. Atlanta was 4-0 against division opponents before failures on pass defense and three missed field goals helped to prevent a sweep of the season series against the Saints.

Though Kirk Cousins passed for 306 yards, he did not have a touchdown pass and threw an interception at the New Orleans 38 with 1:59 left to play.

The Falcons had one more possession, but Cousins was sacked for the third time in the game. That play served as a reminder the Atlanta defense was held without a sack one week after the pass rush showed improvement with three sacks in a 27-21 home win over Dallas.

Atlanta couldn't overcome two first-half touchdown catches by Saints wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who gained 109 yards on only three receptions.

Bijan Robinson continues to flourish in his second season. The running back set a season high with 116 rushing yards with two touchdowns. He added three catches for 28 yards and has five straight games with more than 100 scrimmage yards.

Drake London and Darnell Mooney each had more than 90 receiving yards, but the Falcons failed to take advantage of their 468 total yards and 25-14 advantage in first downs.

“We had all the chances in the world out there and couldn't capitalize,” coach Raheem Morris said.

What’s working

Robinson's 37-yard touchdown run in the third quarter was the highlight of the game for Atlanta. He showed his speed when turning the corner around the right end, impressive balance when he kept his footing after avoiding a defender and then good strength in running through two would-be tacklers near the goal line. He also scored on a fourth-and-1 run early in the game.

What needs help

Younghoe Koo missed three field-goal attempts for the first time in his career. Koo was wide left from 53 yards, had a 35-yarder blocked and had a 46-yarder that would have tied the game in the fourth quarter hit the right upright. Koo made a 27-yarder and is 17 for 24 on field-goal attempts this season. The seven misses are a career high in his nine seasons, including six with Atlanta.

Stock up

With five catches for 96 yards, Mooney continues to put up big numbers. He has at least 75 receiving yards in three consecutive games for the first time in his career. Mooney and London each also topped 90 yards against Tampa Bay in a 36-30 win over Tampa Bay on Oct. 3. The previous time the Falcons had two players top 90 receiving yards twice in a season was Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley in 2020.

Stock down

The Falcons held the Saints to one field goal in the second half, so it is difficult to be too critical of the defense. Even so, the unit was held without a sack or an interception and the secondary struggled to contain Valdes-Scantling. New Orleans was missing injured wide receivers Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed and still the defense allowed Derek Carr to complete 16 of 25 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns.

Injuries

DT Ta’Quon Graham left the game in the first half with a pectoral injury. London's status had been uncertain because of a hip injury, so his team-leading totals of eight catches for 97 yards were impressive.

Key numbers

0 for 2: Cousins has been held without a scoring pass in only two games this season — both against the Saints. He threw an interception in each game, including a 26-24 home win over New Orleans on Sept. 29. Overall, Cousins has 17 TD passes with eight interceptions this season. He had a combined seven touchdown passes with no interceptions in back-to-back wins over Tampa Bay and Dallas before the visit to New Orleans disrupted his momentum.

Next steps

The Falcons stay on the road with a visit to Denver next Sunday. The Broncos just missed giving Kansas City its first loss on Sunday, taking a 16-14 loss.