WATCH: Damiere Byrd, Marcus Mariota Connect on 75-Yard Falcons Touchdown
Not much was going right early for the Atlanta Falcons in Sunday’s matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals, but Damiere Byrd and Marcus Mariota did hook up for a highlight touchdown that could be signaling a change of momentum.
The receiver-quarterback combo connected on a 75-yard touchdown late in the second quarter as the Falcons made an unexpected run after falling behind 21-0. The bomb down the middle of the field cut the Cincinnati advantage to 28-14 with 39 seconds left in the half.
The Falcons added another field goal to close out the quarter after a long punt return to make it 28-17 going into the break.
Considering the Falcons were down three touchdowns, getting within two scores on the way into the locker room has to be considered a win.
Mariota only completed five passes in the first half for 96 yards. The bulk of that production went to Byrd, whose catch was his first of the season. He was a healthy scratch for the first three games and has struggled to get in the field with only two targets in the previous three games.
Before the quick-strike touchdown to Byrd, the Falcons had opened the game with two punts and only 25 yards of offense on those drives.
Both touchdown drives for Atlanta covered 75 yards, with the first needing 16 plays and ending with Tyler Allgeier scoring on a 1-yard plunge. The second TD march wasn’t nearly as prolonged, as Mariota and Byrd went the distance on the first play.
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