Ryan had 60 consecutive red zone passes without an interception last season, the most in the NFL. impression and snagging an interception one-handed in the end zone. That's Alonso doing his best Odell Beckham Jr. This time, it turned out quite well, at least as far as Monday's game is concerned: It was considered a risky trade, given the fact that McCoy has been a productive running back and Alonso was coming off a big injury, but Chip Kelly does what Chip Kelly wants. Kiko Alonso looking good for PhiladelphiaĪmong the changes the Eagles made this offseason was the trade that sent LeSean McCoy to the Buffalo Bills for linebacker Kiko Alonso. If he can put a couple runs like that together each game, the Falcons will be in good shape. Here is a crucial third-and-long in which few expected the Falcons to actually convert, but Coleman makes a couple of cuts and picks up the huge first down for the Falcons. He frequently made people miss and fought for the tough yardage - in other words, he looked like an NFL feature back and not much like a rookie. It wasn't a huge game by any stretch of the imagination, but Coleman looked confident with the ball in his hands and decisive behind his blockers. The Falcons went with rookie third-round pick Coleman as the starter at running back and he definitely flashed some solid play on Monday. Things started to look better for the Eagles in the second half but the slow start has to be somewhat worrying for Chip Kelly. The Eagles thought they had a turnover on the next play, but an illegal contact penalty called it back. That was a pretty bad interception, and one that led to Atlanta points. Murray had just four carries for a loss of 4 yards in that opening half as well, with Sproles picking up 12 yards on three carries. Through one half of play, Bradford completed 15 of 27 passes for 117 yards with no touchdowns and an interception.
Three things we learned from Monday's game Bradford, Murray slow to startĪs noted above, the Bradford/Murray combination didn't look great on Monday, especially in the first half. Rookie Tevin Coleman rushed for 80 yards on 20 carries. Jones had nine receptions for 141 yards and two touchdowns, while White put up 84 yards for the Falcons. Ryan finished with 23-of-34 completions for 298 yards and two touchdowns, with two interceptions. The Falcons as a whole had trouble finishing drives, stalling out in Philadelphia territory multiple times and having to settle for field goals. He found Ju l io Jones for a pair of touchdowns, and Roddy White had plenty of yardage as well, but he also tossed a pair of interceptions, one of which was in the end zone. Darren Sproles led the team with 50 rushing yards, while Murray had just 9 yards and a touchdown on eight carries.įalcons quarterback Matt Ryan didn't have a perfect day by any stretch of the imagination. He finished with 36-of-52 completions for 336 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. But Bradford threw his second interception on a 3rd and 8 late with the game on the line. Murray had an 8-yard rushing touchdown and Bradford found Murray for a 5-yard touchdown to bring themselves within three points of the Falcons in the third quarter. In the second half, things went a bit better for the Eagles on that side of the ball. His timing with his receiving targets looked off, Murray didn't get the blocking he needed and the Eagles didn't really seem to know what they wanted to do in that opening half.
The offense didn't look great as a whole, which is the larger issue. Louis Rams this season, and there were tons of opinions on where he's headed this season, ranging from "he's just going to get hurt again" to "he's finally going to a team that will allow him to reach his potential."īradford didn't have a great game overall, but there wasn't much egregiously bad. Bradford was acquired in a trade with the St. It was the first time we got to see the new-look Eagles in a meaningful game, with Sam Bradford and DeMarco Murray the new offensive stars. Atlanta gave the ball back with 1:49 on the clock and successfully stopped the Eagles, securing an interception on third down. The Eagles drove down the field with under three minutes to go, but Philadelphia kicker Cody Parkey missed a 44-yard field goal that would have given the Eagles the lead. Atlanta dominated the first half, but Philadelphia's offense found a rhythm in the second and the Falcons had to regain a lead late. The Atlanta Falcons held off the Philadelphia Eagles, winning in the first of two Monday Night Football games, 26-24.