Nobody likes the Saints except Saints fans, and this season even that’s in doubt. In a playoff season, in a lost campaign, in the final football game before the apocalypse, the Falcons beating the Saints is something to celebrate.
And they did so, by the way, by two full touchdowns. While there was plenty to pick apart in this performance—too many plays where Tyler Shough escaped, dropped interceptions, stone hands from Kyle Pitts, bad penalties—Atlanta also earned their first win in over a month, dropped their hated rival even further into the basement, and kept whatever dim hope they had left for this season alive. We spend a lot of time thinking about the big picture, especially during a year that’s gone as far off the rails as this one has, but we’re still watching these games to enjoy ourselves and see wins at the end of the day. For the first time in what feels like a tiny eternity, I know I did both.
What mattered most from this game, ultimately, was what we saw from the defense. The Saints are no one’s idea of a juggernaut, but those Taysom Hill handoffs and deep strikes from young quarterbacks have doomed them so many times in the past. In this one, it was young players like James Pearce Jr., Jalon Walker, Ruke Orhorhoro, Brandon Dorlus, Xavier Watts, and Dee Alford making sure those things didn’t happen, with Ronnie Harrison chipping in as a reserve who seems very much worth keeping around at this point. If the Falcons are going to be anything once they figure out where the hell they’re going on offense in 2026 and beyond, they’ll need the defense to be much better than it has been since…well, since a very long time ago. As hapless as this Saints offense can be, this was exactly the kind of lackluster effort that would have led to an inexplicable 27 points in year past. The Falcons defense is progressing, even if it’s in fits and starts, and is good enough to put bad offenses in hell.
The offense had a quieter day—a pair of touchdowns, 24 points, 302 total yards—but was tangibly different. As The Athletic’s Josh Kendall wrote, Atlanta ran nearly half of its plays from under center, which was a season high (before it was just over 9%) and actually a two season high, as even with Kirk Cousins last year the Falcons operated chiefly out of the pistol. They also granted my wish and went with three tight end sets on a third of their snaps, helping them bully the Saints on the ground and giving Charlie Woerner some long-awaited opportunities as a pass catcher. Considering there was no Drake London, it was an impressive day from players who had tough seasons (Darnell Mooney) and ones who hadn’t gotten much if any run at all (David Sills, Dylan Drummond). There will be many conversations in the days to come about why the Falcons made those changes, what that means for and about Michael Penix Jr., and why we couldn’t see any of them with Cousins last year, but for the moment just enjoy a frankly well-executed game.
With the Jets on deck, there’s a chance the Falcons will string together a couple of wins. Don’t let them fool you into thinking they’re going to salvage this season—there’s very little chance of that—but do enjoy watchable football while it lasts and root for this defense to keep building. While the 2025 season may not end up mattering that much, that development certainly does.
The defense for holding the Saints to just three points—the touchdown was on a pick-six—and doing a strong job start to finish.
With Divine Deablo back in the lineup and a quality game plan for Kirk Cousins and company, the Falcons can still beat bad teams. Hey, it’s something.
The very sorry Jets, who will welcome them to New Jersey at 2-9 and are coming off a 10 point effort against a scuffling Ravens defense. If the Falcons are going to pull out of their nosedive a little more completely, a win against New York is a must.
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