So instead of responding to two consecutive Eagles touchdowns, Matt Ryan got happy feet and couldn't move the chains at all. The Eagles took over, and Dunta Robinson did his whole "I'm gonna hit you with my helmet" skit that resulted in a big penalty and likely a fine for the Falcons cornerback. Fortunately, the defense held up, and Curtis Lofton almost had a pick-six. On a pretty high-scoring night, Mike Vick has not looked his best at times.
But on the ensuing punt, Eric Weems made a crucial mistake by not calling for a fair catch, which then allowed the ball to roll all the way to the one-yard line. A near-safety on third down and a horrible punt by Matt Bosher gave the Eagles great field position at the Atlanta 18-yard line. You heard right: Bosher didn't even hit that punt 30 yards.
Lots of stuff happened after that. On a third-down passing play that went for an Eagles first down, Vick was hit by a blitzing Williams Moore and subsequently was knocked to the ground by his own offensive lineman. He was seen spitting up blood, and was taken to the locker room a few plays later.
So, the great Mike Kafka came in, and as expected the Eagles relied on LeSean McCoy to punch it in for their third touchdown of the third quarter. The Falcons could've forced a field goal, but a very questionable roughing the passer call gave the Eagles a free first down inside the three.
On the drive that followed, failed pass protection again allowed Ryan to get knocked around. The Falcons need to give him more time in the pocket, lest they'd prefer seeing him end up like Vick. With the Falcons down 10, it'll all come down to the offense in the final quarter of this game. With Mike Kafka now in at quarterback, that should hopefully make that task a little easier. Hopefully...
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