'All Ball is Ball': Falcons Earning Respect After Win vs. 49ers
The Atlanta Falcons captured their most impressive victory of the season Sunday afternoon. Inside the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the Falcons recorded a 28-14 home win over the San Francisco 49ers.
Quarterback Marcus Mariota completing all, but one of his 14 pass attempts played a significant role in the Falcons' Week 6 victory. But once against, Atlanta's rushing attack helped the franchise stand second in the NFC South with a 3-3 record.
"We knew that that was going to be their gameplan," 49ers defensive lineman Charles Omenihu said. "They aren’t going to stop if you aren’t stopping them. If you were holding them to maybe two-yard gains, one-yard gains, no gain type of philosophy. If you aren’t doing that, then they’re just going to keep going."
The Falcons proved they had one of the league's best rushing attacks ahead of their match against the 49ers. But through the first five weeks, San Francisco had possessed arguably the league's best defensive team in 2022.
Before losing to the Falcons, the 49ers came into Atlanta giving up an average of 12.2 points while holding their opponents to a league-best 71.4 yards on the ground.
Atlanta eclipsed over 100 yards in rushing for the fifth time this season. The Falcons netted 168 yards on the ground against the 49ers without their lead back Cordarrelle Patterson, who missed his second consecutive game due to a knee injury.
Running back Caleb Huntley led the way for the Falcons with a team-best 59 yards on 16 carries, while Mariota scored the lone rushing touchdown of the game.
"It’s not really frustrating, all ball is ball," 49ers defensive lineman Drake Jackson said. "You know if you stop a run, you already know what is coming next so it’s not like they are going to trick you with anything.
"We did some things well and we did some things that also weren’t. Just have to see the tapes, see what we did wrong and come back and just go create more havoc."
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