The Atlanta Falcons came away with a 22-21 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football.
The thrilling victory had to be satisfying for quarterback Kirk Cousins, who engineered his 10th career game-winning drive.
Here are four takeaways the Falcons can be proud of.
The Falcons Running Game Is For Real
Bijan Robinson ran for 97 yards and Atlanta’s run game had 152 yards on 28 attempts. Tyler Allgeier had some big runs on his five Carrie’s for 58 yards and the Falcons were able to run up the middle as well as on the ends. That bodes well for ball control.
Kirk Cousins Can Handle Big-Game Pressure
Quarterback Kirk Cousins showed the naysayers why the Falcons paid a 36-year-old over a $100,000 contract with that last drive.
“He went out and played important in the biggest moments in the biggest times,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said. “Those are things you want to have happen when you have a chance to go out there and get wins. It was great to see today with Kirk Cousins.”
Even former Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan had high praise.
The Falcons Secondary Can Cover
Atlanta played a lot of zone against the Eagles’ speedy receivers, which allowed safety Jessie Bates to roam freely.
Although the Falcons gave up some big plays to the Eagles’ Jalen Hurts when he ran, he only managed 183 yards passing. That’s a lockdown when you have a receiver like DeVonta Smith (76 yards).
Can They Contain Patrick Mahomes?
Hurts is a dual-threat with his legs and arm, but the Falcons’ next opponent, the Kansas City Chiefs, will be the ultimate test.
Hurts finished with 85 yards on the ground on 13 Carries. Mahomes is a more instinctual runner with even more big-play ability. Can the Falcons stop him? We’ll see.
The Falcons schedule gets tougher now, but Morris seems to have his Dirty Birds ready to play.