Well, the third quarter was an interesting one. On the first Saints possession, they managed to drive all the way down to the Atlanta 23, but as they have all day the defense bent but didn't break and forced the Saints to try for a field goal. This time, John Kasay's long attempt would come up short, and the Falcons got away without any hurt.
On offense, the Falcons managed to string together another fantastic, long drive. This time, they finally got the ball in for a touchdown. Matt Ryan found Harry Douglas three times on the drive, and when he wasn't involved Michael Turner was pounding the rock inside. Then at the New Orleans 20, Ryan amazingly was able to duck underneath a would-be sacker and found Jason Snelling on the short dumpoff pass.
And Snelling kept going, through seven Saints defenders in fact. Yes that's right, Snelling went through the entire Saints defense for the 21-yard TD catch to pull the Falcons ahead 13-10. On the next Saints possession however, Drew Brees would quickly answer with a touchdown of his own. After finding Marques Colston twice for 34 yards to begin the drive, he hit Robert Meachem deep on a 33-yard TD pass, pulling the Saints ahead by four.
To make matters worse, on the first play of the fourth quarter, Ryan's pass- which was intended for Roddy White- bounced of his most trusted receiver's hands and into the arms of Scott Shanle. The Falcons defense came up big by limiting the Saints to only a field goal, but John Kasay's attempt would hold true and extend their lead to seven points.
For more on Sunday's game, check out The Falcoholic, SB Nation's Atlanta Falcons blog, and Canal Street Chronicles, SB Nation's New Orleans Saints blog.