The Falcons have gotten off to an impressive start in Atlanta in their first exhibition game of the season.
On the game's opening drive, Matt Ryan marched the team 80 yards down the field for a score, and threw a perfect five for five in the process. Though he would be picked off by linebacker Brendan Ayanbadejo, thus far Ryan has 155 yards on nine completions, one TD and one INT.
Last year's first-round draft pick Julio Jones had four of those catches, including a seven-yard catch in the end zone to put the Falcons up 7-0 early. Already in only the first quarter he has amassed 109 yards on six receptions.
Mike Nolan's defense was equally impressive, not allowing even one first down by the Ravens' first-string offense during the first 15 minutes of play. Kroy Biermann notched a sack, Sean Weatherspoon made a couple of nice tackles in coverage, and the unit simply gave a strong performance on the whole.
The Falcons special teams unit also turned some heads. CB Dominique Franks, a leading competitor for the punt return job, broke off a 45-yard return early in the quarter.
Unfortunately, rookie and expected starter FB Bradie Ewing hurt his knee on the same play, and took some time to get off the field. More news regarding that injury should be available soon.
For more on this game Falcons fans should visit The Falcoholic and Ravens fans should check out Baltimore Beatdown. For more news and notes from around the NFL head over to SB Nation'sNFL hub page.