The Atlanta Falcons’ losing streak finally came to an end, as Kirk Cousins & Co. earned a much-needed victory over the Las Vegas Raiders, 15-9, on Monday night.
Atlanta moves to 7-7 so far this year, which is huge considering the tight race in the NFC South right now. Meanwhile, the Raiders continue to fall to 2-12.
It wasn’t the prettiest victory, but at this point in the season, with three games left after this one, a win is a win.
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Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London (5) celebrates with wide receiver Darnell Mooney (1) after scoring a touchdown against the Las Vegas Raiders during the first quarter at Allegiant Stadium. (Images by Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn)
The Falcons’ offense didn’t have the great performance it would have liked, but at least Cousins threw his first touchdown for the first time in five games.
It was Drake London who caught a 30-yard pass to put Atlanta on the board first, breaking a streak in which Cousins had eight interceptions and no touchdowns thrown.
But it was the only time the Falcons were able to find the end zone, as many drives stalled in Raiders territory, leading to field goal attempts by Younghoe Koo.
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Koo was 2-for-3 on his attempts, but that would only amount to 13 points on offense.
On defense, the Falcons got their way with Raiders quarterback Desmond Ridder, who was starting against his former team in place of the injured Aidan O’Connell.
When the Falcons stopped the running game (they allowed 65 total yards for the entire game with Sincere McCormick ruled out with an injury early on), Ridders was forced to throw and threw an interception while being sacked three times.
Atlanta was also able to make Alexander Mattison fumble, as they continued to make plays to change the field.
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Desmond Ridder (10) carries the ball against the Atlanta Falcons in the first half at Allegiant Stadium. (Images by Kirby Lee-Imagn)
But this game, tough as it was, ultimately came down to the final play out of Ridder’s hands when Las Vegas was down six and needed a touchdown and an extra point to win it.
Ridder threw two Hail Mary’s into the end zone, but the first fell incomplete and Falcons star safety Jessie Bates III took the last to secure the victory.
So on the stat sheet, Cousins was just 11-for-17 with 112 yards. He also threw another interception to go along with his touchdown.
For the Falcons, the running game was superior, with Bijan Robinson carrying 22 times for 125 yards and Tyler Allgeier adding 43 yards on 12 carries.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (18) throws the ball against the Las Vegas Raiders in the first half at Allegiant Stadium. (Images by Kirby Lee-Imagn)
As for the Raiders, Jakobi Meyers led receiving yards with 59 to account for a large portion of Ridder’s 208 yards on 23-of-38 passing. Ameer Abdullah, the Raiders’ lone touchdown scorer, also had seven catches for 58 yards.
