It took almost three quarters, but the Falcons have finally made it across the Texans' goal line in this ball game.
After John Abraham made a big-time sack that helped get the Texans offense off the field, the Falcons started finding their rhythm on offense. Ryan would narrowly escape fumbling the ball away by virtue of a timely Houston penalty, but the drive would stall on the Texans' side of the 50. Instead of kicking a 54-yard field goal, Mike Smith elected to go for it on fourth down, and a pass tipped by Connor Barwin would fall incomplete.
However, the defense would show up big yet again. After giving up an 18-yard run to Arian Foster, the run defense would clamp down- Sean Weatherspoon made a particularly nice stop- and quickly stop T.J. Yates on third down. In a decision much unlike Mike Smith's, the Texans chose to try a 54-yard field goal that would come up short and give the Falcons some good field position.
And then the Falcons offense put up six points at last. Ryan led the team on a seven-play drive that began at the Atlanta 44-yard line, and on third down would hit Julio Jones on a fade route that would net a 26-yard gain. One play later, Ryan would find a wide open Roddy White for the 4-yard touchdown toss, tying the game up at 10 apiece.
For more on the Falcons, check out The Falcoholic; for more Texans, head over to Battle Red Blog.