Atlanta Falcons vs Philadelphia Eagles Match Player Stats (Sep 16, 2024)

Kirk Cousins threw for 241 yards and two touchdowns as Atlanta stunned Philadelphia 22-21 at Lincoln Financial Field on September 16, 2024. Cousins completed 5 of 6 passes for 70 yards on the game-winning drive, capping it with a 7-yard touchdown to Drake London with 34 seconds left. Saquon Barkley rushed for 95 yards in his Philadelphia home debut, while Bijan Robinson gained 97 yards on the ground for Atlanta. Jessie Bates III sealed the comeback with an interception of Jalen Hurts with 27 seconds remaining.

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Quick Game Leaders

Game Information

Philadelphia won the coin toss and received the opening kickoff after Atlanta deferred. The Eagles entered 1-0 following a 34-29 victory over Green Bay in Brazil, while the Falcons came in at 0-1 after an 18-10 defensive battle against Pittsburgh where the offense managed just 226 total yards.

Scoring Summary

Both teams went scoreless in the first quarter before Philadelphia broke through with Smith’s 7-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter. Atlanta didn’t reach the end zone until Cousins connected with Mooney for 41 yards at 1:21 of the third quarter.

Team Statistics

Philadelphia held the ball for 35:39 compared to Atlanta’s 24:21, yet the Falcons gained 20 more total yards and committed six fewer penalties. The Eagles were flagged nine times for 53 yards, including three illegal man downfield penalties that wiped out positive gains.

Next Gen Stats calculated Atlanta’s win probability at just 0.7% with 1:56 remaining in the fourth quarter. The comeback ranks as the seventh most improbable victory in the Next Gen Stats era since 2016, per NFL.com’s analysis.

Quarterback Statistics

Kirk Cousins Performance

Cousins completed 69.0% of his passes for 241 yards without an interception. Both touchdown passes gave Atlanta leads at crucial junctures: the 41-yard strike to Mooney put the Falcons ahead 15-10 in the third quarter, and the 7-yard completion to London provided the 22-21 advantage with 34 seconds left. Cousins averaged 8.3 yards per attempt, reflecting Atlanta’s downfield approach with completions of 41, 26, and 21 yards on scoring drives per ESPN’s official box score.

He completed 5 of 6 attempts for 70 yards in just 65 seconds on the final drive. Mooney caught consecutive gains of 21 and 26 yards, moving Atlanta from their 41-yard line to Philadelphia’s 12 in two plays.

Jalen Hurts Performance

Hurts completed 76.7% of his passes for 183 yards, adding 85 rushing yards and a touchdown on the ground. His dual-threat ability kept Philadelphia’s offense moving throughout, particularly on a second-quarter drive where he scrambled for 23 yards after drawing a delay-of-game penalty for spiking the ball. His 1-yard touchdown run via the “tush push” gave Philadelphia an 18-15 lead with 6:47 remaining.

His final pass attempt sailed over DeVonta Smith along the left sideline with 27 seconds left, landing in Bates’ arms for the game-sealing interception. The 6.1 yards per attempt average reflected Philadelphia’s conservative approach without injured receiver A.J. Brown, who missed the game with a hamstring injury.

Receiving Statistics

Atlanta Pass Catchers

Mooney gained 88 yards on three receptions, with his 41-yard touchdown catch representing his longest gain. He broke free from C.J. Gardner-Johnson on the scoring play and somersaulted into the end zone. On the game-winning drive, he caught passes of 21 and 26 yards down the left sideline on consecutive plays, beating Philadelphia’s secondary twice.

London caught six of seven targets for 54 yards and the game-winning touchdown despite heavy coverage from Darius Slay throughout. Pitts hauled in three passes for 20 yards, including an 11-yard reception on the first play of the final drive.

Philadelphia Pass Catchers

Smith led Philadelphia with seven catches for 76 yards and absorbed extra targets with Brown sidelined. His 7-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter briefly gave the Eagles a 7-3 lead. Covey grabbed all six targets but gained just 23 yards, operating primarily as a short-yardage option.

Rushing Statistics

Atlanta Ground Game

Robinson averaged 6.9 yards per carry on 14 attempts and consistently broke tackles while gaining chunks against Philadelphia’s front seven. A 19-yard run in the third quarter came on a cutback that left two defenders grasping and extended Atlanta’s lead. Robinson finished with 122 total yards from scrimmage (97 rushing, 25 receiving) and became the first Falcons running back since Michael Turner in 2011 to record at least 100 scrimmage yards in each of the team’s first two games.

Allgeier provided quality depth with 53 yards on nine carries, averaging 5.9 yards per attempt. Atlanta’s ground game produced 5.4 yards per carry as a team.

Philadelphia Ground Game

Barkley rushed for 95 yards on 22 carries in his Lincoln Financial Field debut and totaled 116 yards from scrimmage (95 rushing, 21 receiving). The 116-yard output came against a defense that held him to 4.3 yards per carry through consistent gap discipline. He converted the two-point conversion after Hurts’ touchdown with 6:47 remaining and leaped over the goal line to give Philadelphia an 18-15 lead.

Hurts added 85 rushing yards on 13 carries, accounting for nearly half of Philadelphia’s ground production. His 23-yard scramble on a second-quarter drive set up Smith’s touchdown.

Defensive Statistics

Atlanta Defensive Leaders

Bates finished with 12 tackles, two pass deflections, and the game-sealing interception with 27 seconds remaining. The pick came after Hurts threw deep for Smith along the left sideline, as Bates read the route and positioned himself for the takeaway.

Judon posted his first sack as a Falcon in the third quarter and dropped Hurts for no gain on first-and-10. Judon extended his Monday Night Football streak to four consecutive games with at least one sack dating back to his Baltimore tenure.

Philadelphia Defensive Leaders

Blankenship led Philadelphia with 10 tackles, but the Eagles’ defense couldn’t generate consistent pressure on Cousins. Williams tallied the lone sack, dropped Cousins for an 8-yard loss in the third quarter.

Gardner-Johnson delivered a massive hit on fourth-and-1 at the Atlanta 39 with 5:42 remaining, stuffed Robinson short of the marker and gave Philadelphia’s offense excellent field position.

Special Teams Performance

Koo converted all three field goal attempts from 39, 22, and 34 yards. His extra point attempt came from 48 yards out after London was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct following the game-winning touchdown.

The Final Drive

Atlanta took possession at their own 30-yard line with 1:39 remaining, trailing 21-15. Cousins operated the no-huddle offense with precision despite facing 0.7% win probability per Next Gen Stats.

Six-Play Sequence:

1. 1st-and-10 at ATL 30: Cousins complete to Kyle Pitts for 11 yards (tackle by Nakobe Dean)
2. 1st-and-10 at ATL 41: Cousins complete to Darnell Mooney for 21 yards (tackle by Reed Blankenship)
3. 1st-and-10 at PHI 38: Cousins complete to Darnell Mooney for 26 yards (tackle by Zack Baun)
4. 1st-and-10 at PHI 12: Cousins complete to Drake London for 5 yards (tackle by Quinyon Mitchell)
5. 2nd-and-5 at PHI 7: Cousins incomplete to Ray-Ray McCloud III (defended by Avonte Maddox)
6. 3rd-and-5 at PHI 7: Cousins complete to Drake London for 7-yard touchdown

The drive consumed just 1:05 of game clock, covered 70 yards in six plays. Cousins completed 5 of 6 passes for 70 yards, with the back-to-back Mooney completions that moved Atlanta from their 41 to Philadelphia’s 12 in just two plays.

London beat Slay’s coverage on the game-winning touchdown, caught Cousins’ pass in the right corner of the end zone. Koo converted the 48-yard extra point to give Atlanta a 22-21 lead with 34 seconds remaining.

Key Moments That Decided The Game

Barkley’s Third Down Drop

With Philadelphia leading 18-15 and facing third-and-3 from the Atlanta 10-yard line with 1:46 remaining, Hurts threw a perfectly placed pass to Barkley running a flat route to the right. The ball hit Barkley’s hands and fell incomplete, stopping the clock and forcing Elliott’s 28-yard field goal attempt.

A completion would have given Philadelphia a first down and allowed them to run the clock down to nearly nothing before attempting a field goal. Instead, Atlanta received the ball back with 1:39 remaining and all three timeouts.

Gardner-Johnson’s Fourth Down Stop

With 5:42 remaining and Atlanta trailing 21-18, the Falcons faced fourth-and-1 at their own 39-yard line. Robinson took the handoff but Gardner-Johnson timed the snap perfectly, met Robinson in the hole and delivered a crushing hit that stopped him short of the first down marker.

The stop gave Philadelphia possession at the Atlanta 39, seemingly putting the game away. The Eagles gained two first downs and milked the clock before Elliott’s field goal, yet their inability to convert that field position into a touchdown left an opening.

Sirianni’s Aggressive Calls

Philadelphia’s fourth-and-4 gamble at the Atlanta 9-yard line in the first quarter resulted in an incomplete pass to Goedert and zero points instead of an easy Elliott field goal. Later, with third-and-3 from the Atlanta 10, Philadelphia called a play-action pass instead of running Barkley to force Atlanta to use timeouts.

Series History and Context

Philadelphia leads the all-time regular season series 18-15-1 according to Sports Reference Stathead. The Eagles had won four of the last five meetings before this Monday Night Football matchup.

This victory represented Atlanta’s first regular season road opener win since 2017, snapping an 0-6 streak. The Falcons also ended Philadelphia’s perfect September record, as the Eagles had gone 7-0 in September games since 2022.

For Cousins, this marked his fourth win in his last five Monday Night Football starts after losing his first nine appearances. Tru Media tracking reveals Cousins has now thrown five game-winning touchdown passes in the final minute since 2015, tied for second-most in the NFL during that span.

Week 2 Standings Impact

The week 2 game recap shows Atlanta’s comeback improved them to 1-1 before a Sunday night showdown against defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City. Philadelphia fell to 1-1, faces questions about discipline and closing ability after committing nine penalties.

The Eagles’ penalty issues proved costly throughout, with three illegal man downfield flags that wiped out positive gains. Their red zone inefficiency at 40% (2-of-5 touchdowns) left points on the field in a one-point loss.

Philadelphia would face New Orleans in Week 3 before a trip to Tampa Bay, both divisional opponents. The Eagles face Baltimore in December in a critical matchup. Atlanta prepared to host Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ defense.

Raheem Morris earned his first victory as Atlanta’s head coach, receiving the game ball in the visitors’ locker room after the comeback. The win validated the Falcons’ offseason investments, particularly the four-year, $180 million contract given to Cousins.

Statistical Analysis

Per Pro Football Reference’s box score data, Atlanta’s efficiency metrics tell the comeback story. The Falcons averaged 6.6 yards per play compared to Philadelphia’s 5.4, with execution on critical third downs that proved decisive despite converting just 22.2% overall.

Red zone efficiency separated the teams in the final analysis. Atlanta converted their lone red zone touchdown at the critical moment, while Philadelphia managed just 40% conversion (2-of-5), settled for field goals that left the door open.

Third down execution in critical moments mattered more than overall percentages. Philadelphia converted 46.2% (6-of-13) compared to Atlanta’s 22.2% (2-of-9), yet Cousins completed two crucial third-down passes on the game-winning drive for 47 combined yards, showed how situational football overcame statistical disadvantages.

The comeback from 0.7% win probability with 1:56 remaining ranks among the most improbable finishes in recent Monday Night Football history. Cousins, Robinson, and Bates delivered on the final drive with 70 yards in 65 seconds, while Barkley’s drop and Hurts’ final interception defined Philadelphia’s night in a game that validated Atlanta’s offseason moves and proved they could compete against playoff-caliber opponents in prime time.

Game statistics sourced from ESPN, Pro Football Reference, NFL.com, and Sports Reference.