Ravens 21 Falcons 26

The first 'Thursday Night Football' game of the year was a great game between 2 great teams, but the home Falcons managed to dig deep and get the win in the end.  To be fair to the Falcons, they dominated in the first half, leading 10 - 0 at the break.  Their 2 scores came from RB Jason Snelling (28 yard pass) and a 28 yard FG by Matt Bryant.  Falcons QB Matt Ryan had a great day, and really looks to be developing into the franchise QB.  He finished the game with 316 yards and 3 TD's, 0 INT's.  It was a good job that Ryan had a good day, as the Ravens tough defence was very stingy against the run.  RB Micheal Turner had only 39 yards in the game.

The Falcons defence though was dominant, getting a huge amount of pressure onto Ravens QB Joe Flacco.  Flacco had a good 2nd half, as the Ravens made their comeback attempt.  His numbers on the day were 215 yards, 3 TD's and 1 INT.  The catalyst for the Ravens comeback though was WR Anquan Boldin.  Boldin had 5 catches for 50 yards and a TD on the day.  But it was not particularly his performance on the field that lifted the team, Boldin was seen every time the offence was off the field walking around, talking to his team mates, motivating them.  He actually gathered the offence together before the first Ravens TD drive.  Flacco found Boldin himself from 5 yards out, to cut the lead to 13 - 7.

The Falcons though responded, and WR Roddy White got his first TD of the day, a 4 yard pass from Ryan.  White was the star of the game, catching 12 balls for 128 yards and 2 TD's.  He actually dropped 2 balls that were right at him, one that nearly cost the Falcons the game.  With the score 20 - 14, following a Derrick Mason TD for the Ravens, and just over 3 minutes on the clock, the Falcons faced a 3rd and 4.  Trying to take time off the clock, Ryan hit White right in the hands with a 5 yard pass, which he inexpliciply dropped.  This meant the Ravens got the ball back, and Flacco lead them down the field in 8 plays and 2 minutes, before finding TE Todd Heap from 9 yards.  The extra point from K Billy Cundiff gave the Ravens their first lead of the night, 21 - 20, with just 1.05 on the clock.

This was when QB Matt Ryan came into his own.  He found WR Michael Jenkins for 24 yards, White for 15 yards, before throwing a pass to TE Tony Gonzalez on 3rd down which fell incomplete.  The officials though had thrown a flag for pass interference, and the drive was still alive.  Ryan then looked long for Roddy White, who appeared to push off his defender slightly, before taking off for a 33 yard TD.  This time there was no flag and the Georgia Dome erupted.

This was a great win for the Falcons, one that will now catapult them into the conversation as one of the best teams in not only the NFC, but the league.  The Ravens were under no illusions on how difficult this game would be for them, but they really acquitted themselves well in defeat.  They to have a great young QB, and are without doubt one of the best teams in the entire NFL.  Was last nights game a 'Superbowl' dress rehearsal??  I certainly wouldn't mind seeing that game again.