LISTEN: How Did Falcons Blow Late Lead vs. Washington?

The Atlanta Falcons were four minutes from winning their second consecutive game, holding a 30-22 lead at home against the Washington Football Team.

Instead, 12 points scored by the WFT in the final four minutes gave the Falcons their third loss in four weeks.

When Washington capped off a 10-play, 70-yard drive to cut its deficit to two, all Atlanta had to do was wind the clock down and get a first down or two. Running the football was the logical choice made by head coach Arthur Smith, but running back Mike Davis lost three yards on first down, gained back just four on second and the Falcons could not convert on third.

One player notably absent on that three-and-out was Cordarrelle Patterson, who doubles as a receiver/running back. Patterson scored three times earlier in the game, but was surprisingly not even on the field for the team's most important drive of the day.

Smith opted to go with the more traditional power running back in Davis.

“You trust him. A lot of it is about ball security," Smith explained. "CP does a lot of things for us, and it's Mike or [Wayne] Gallman. Those are guys you trust there in four-minute."

Patterson was arguably the only source of offense for the Falcons all day, and the final drive proved that the team needs more than one playmaker to get the job done.

On this episode of "Locked On Falcons," host Aaron Freeman shares his takeaways from the Atlanta Falcons' 34-30 loss to the Washington Football Team in Week 4.

He summarizes the highs and lows of the game along with the late-game mistakes that cost the Falcons another fourth-quarter lead, and hands out grades for the offense, defense and special teams before discussing whether this game showcased "real" progress for the team.

Aaron deals with all that and more on this episode of "Locked On Falcons." For more podcasts and information, join us here.

CONTINUE READING: Where was Cordarrelle Patterson in 4th Quarter?