Atlanta Falcons remain unbeaten after thrilling 30-28 win against Carolina Panthers – NFL Recap
Atlanta Falcons continued their winning run in Week 4 as they went past Carolina Panthers 30-28 in an electrifying finish to the game on Sunday, September 30, 2012, at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia.
Falcons scored the winning move during the final seconds of the game, thanks to a 40-yard field goal from kicker Matt Bryant.
Both team showed good offensive play. Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan gave a surprising performance during the game. He was sacked as many as seven times, the highest for a game in his entire career.
However, he did manage to turn things around during the final minute of the game as he was able to throw an exceptional 59-yard pass to wide receiver Roddy White which became the source of Bryant’s field goal.
During the postgame talk, Falcons head coach Mike Smith said:
"That was exciting. Every time guys that it looked bleak and it didn't look like we had the chance in the last five minutes we were able to overcome it and finish it. We want to start fast and we want to finish everything that we do and we were able to do
that.”
On the other hand, Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was not that fortunate as his fumble led to the Falcons’ winning points.
Newton completed 15 out of 24 passes for 215 yards and scored two passing touchdowns, while he also ran for another touchdown. According to the Associated Press, Newton said:
"You have to protect the football. That was a key focus going into this game, and I fumbled. There's a lot of guys that are trusting the ball carrier, and I was the ball carrier that particular play to get the job done. And I dropped the ball."
Falcons got the head start with a 17-yard touchdown pass to tight end Greg Olsen from Newton. Panthers replied as Matt Ryan threw a 49-yard pass to White for a touchdown. First quarter ended with 7-7.
Second quarter started with a 41-yard field goal from Bryant. Panthers then recovered their lead with a 13-yard run by running back DeAngelo Williams.
White then scored another touchdown for Falcons as he caught a 14-yard pass from Ryan, ending the first half 14-17.
Second half also got a thrilling start with Ryan throwing a superb 60-yard pass to running back Michael Turner who reached the end zone for a touchdown. Then Newton came with a four-yard run to the end zone to take the score to 21-24.
Panther scored early in the final quarter, but the game slipped out of their hands in the final minutes as Bryant scored two field goals to end the game 30-28.
Despite giving good performance throughout the game, Panthers defence was unable to stop Ryan from throwing accurate long passes towards the end.
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