After a less-than-stellar 27-7 loss in their preseason opener against the Broncos last week, the Falcons look to turn the tables against the Colts during their second exhibition game Saturday in Indianapolis.
Tua Tagovailoa has been in the spotlight, after starting last week and struggling through his first live opportunities with the offense. He took full-squad reps against the Colts in their joint practices this week.
Here’s some pregame reading to get caught up:
The Falcons completed a wire-to-wire dominant 34-6 victory over the Colts in Indianapolis. They’ll finish the preseason next week at Miami.
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Colts kicker Blake Grupe missed a 36-yard field goal wide right, keeping the Falcons’ lead at 34-6 with 6:05 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Falcons kicker Nick Folk nails a 50-yard field goal to open the fourth quarter, extending the team’s lead to 34-6 with 14:55 remaining in the game.
Maybe the biggest takeaway from today is that the intensity ramped up from the opening drive on defense — and it stayed there.
The reserves played with energy and maintained it, which is commendable. It’s hard to do that throughout the course of a game, and they did it, keeping the Colts on their heels through three quarters.
The offense clicked, and the offensive line played well all game. The runners had adequate lanes to find positive yardage, and the quarterbacks had plenty of time to make their throws.
Defensively, the Falcons shut down the Colts and didn’t give up many big plays, nor yards after the catch.
To be clear, it’s a preseason game, against the Colts’ reserves, so it’s not time to go crazy, but it’s a positive turn, given what happened last week.
The Falcons picked up where they left off, marching 73 yards in four plays for a touchdown.
Quarterback Jack Strand completed two passes for 57 yards, including a 36-yard ball to receiver Antwane “Juice” Wells down the right sideline. The next play, Strand scrambled for a 16-yard touchdown.
The Minnesota State-Moorhead product is 6-for-6 passing for 108 yards and one touchdown to go along with 21 yards on two scrambles.
That’s an impressive first half from the Falcons, holding a 24-6 lead over the Colts.
Again, it’s not just about the numbers. Look at the production from the backs — with a push from the offensive line. Note the quarterbacks and how they had time to throw, and Cooper Rush and Jack Strand combined to go 14-of-15 for 137 yards and a touchdown.
The defense hasn’t given up many big plays, and they’ve gotten off the field when they’ve needed to, holding the Colts to 0-for-6 on third downs.
Anything that happens in the second half is sprinkles on the sundae after that performance in the first 60 minutes.
The Falcons carry a commanding 24-6 lead over the Colts into the locker room. Atlanta holds a 229-91 edge in total yards and a 13-4 advantage in first downs.
Falcons quarterbacks Cooper Rush and Jack Strand are a combined 14-for-15 passing for 137 yards and one touchdown, and the team has rushed 19 times for 92 yards and a pair of scores.
Defensively, the Falcons have limited the Colts to just 29 rushing yards, and quarterback Riley Leonard is only 7-for-14 passing for 62 yards. They've yet to convert any of their six attempts on third down.
All told, a much cleaner, more efficient performance so far this afternoon for the Falcons.
Falcons quarterback Jack Strand, in his first possession of the game, found running back Cash Jones on a sprint-rollout to the right side. Jones, uncovered on third-and-2 from the 12-yard line, caught a quick dump-off and won a footrace to the end zone.
The Falcons have now scored on four of their first five drives and lead the Colts, 24-6, with less than 40 seconds remaining in the first half.
The Falcons planned to split halves between quarterbacks Cooper Rush and Jack Strand, but they’ve turned to Strand early.
The undrafted rookie from Minnesota State-Moorhead took the reins with 5:05 remaining in the second quarter.
Rush impressed, going 10-for-11 passing for 86 yards and leading three scoring drives across four possessions.
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