Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat Atlanta Falcons by 22-17 – NFL Week 17 Recap
Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the leaders of National Football Conference (NFC) South Atlanta Falcons by 22-17 in Week 17 game on Sunday, December 30, 2012, at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, GA.
Buccaneers kept pressure on Falcons throughout the game. Their kicker Connor Barth started the lead by a 48-yard field goal in the first quarter.
Falcons kicker Matt Bryant also kicked a field goal of 28 yards and equalised the score at 3-3. These were the only points scored by Falcons in first half.
In second quarter, Buccaneers quarterback Josh Freeman scored by throwing an 8-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mike Williams, and took the lead to 10-3.
Freeman was 19 of 35 for 222 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
In his post-game remarks, he said:
"Obviously, ending the season like this and not making the playoffs, it's unacceptable and it's not where we want to be, but I was really happy with the way guys finished today."
He added:
"We weren't trying to do anything creative or special. Everybody was just sticking with their job, and we did it for four quarters and we came out with the win."
At 03:03, Barth got another chance to kick a field goal of 22 yards and led the score to 13-3. In third quarter, he scored third field goal of 42 yards.
Falcons made a comeback in the game when their running back Michael Turner rushed for 17 yards and scored a touchdown at 03:45, reducing the lead with 10-16.
At the end of third quarter, Buccaneers failed to score on two-point conversion pass after rookie running back Doug Martin’s 40-yard rushing touchdown, and led the score to 22-10.
The Buccaneers’ first round pick of the National Football League (NFL) 2012 draft rushed for 142 yards on 28 carries, it was his highest yards in a game this season.
In fourth quarter, Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Harry Douglas and took the score to 17-22.
Ryan, who scored four touchdowns in a 31-18 win against Detroit Lions in Week 16 game, was sacked twice. He finished the game with 28 of 44 passes for 238 yards and a touchdown.
Falcons cornerback Dunta Robinson left the field with a head injury in first quarter, and defensive end John Abraham injured his left ankle in fourth quarter.
Falcons head coach Mike Smith was not satisfied with this performance of the team, he said:
"You want to go out and play your best. To go out there and not play your best is counterintuitive to guys in that locker room and it's counterintuitive to us as football coaches."
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