National Football League
Atlanta 34, Denver 27
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, November 8, 2020
Where: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
Temperature: Dome
Head Official: Jerome Boger
Attendance: 7665

Matt Ryan threw for three touchdowns and the Atlanta Falcons continued their resurgence under interim coach Raheem Morris with a 34-27 victory against the visiting Denver Broncos on Sunday afternoon at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

Ryan finished 25-of-35 passing for 284 yards and an interception. Olamide Zaccheaus racked up 103 receiving yards on four catches -- all in the first half.

The Falcons (3-6) are 3-1 with Morris in charge after the firing of coach Dan Quinn last month. This marked Atlanta's first victory in five home games this season.

Denver quarterback Drew Lock was 25-of-48 passing for 313 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He also led the Broncos on the ground with 47 yards on six carries, with his 10-yard run with 1:52 to play helping cut the deficit to 34-27 on a drive that covered 82 yards in five plays.

Atlanta then recovered its second onside kick of the quarter. After the Falcons punted, Denver took over at its own 20-yard line with 38 seconds left but failed to gain yardage on four snaps.

The Broncos (3-5), trailing 27-6 in the third quarter, were unable to overcome a 21-point deficit as they did a week earlier against the Los Angeles Chargers. Still, they scored three fourth-quarter touchdowns.

The scoring began with Younghoe Koo's 52-yard field goal for the Falcons. Next came Ryan's 51-yard pass to Zaccheaus with 1:24 left in the opening quarter.

Ryan hooked up with Brandon Powell for a 9-yard touchdown play and Koo made a 35-yard field goal as the Falcons led 20-3 at halftime. Atlanta's first-half scoring drives consisted of 10, 11, nine and 12 plays.

Ryan had 216 first-half passing yards, with nearly half of those going to Zaccheaus.

The Broncos, who had their practice schedule disrupted for the second week in a row because of coronavirus concerns, were limited to Brandon McManus field goals of 43 and 41 yards through three quarters. Their first touchdown came on Lock's 20-yard pass play to Jerry Jeudy with 13:15 remaining.

But thoughts of another comeback were dashed on their next possession when Lock was intercepted by Ricardo Allen. Atlanta converted two plays later on Todd Gurley's 4-yard touchdown run.

Lock's 9-yard pass to Tim Patrick with 3:53 left trimmed the margin, but Atlanta recovered an onside kick.

Gurley was the game's top rusher with 53 yards on 19 attempts.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
Rushing
Denver   Atlanta
Drew Lock Player Todd Gurley
7 Attempts 19
47 Yards 53
6.7 Avg Yards 2.8
1 Touchdowns 1
16 Long 13
Receiving
Denver   Atlanta
Jerry Jeudy Player Olamide Zaccheaus
7 Receptions 4
125 Yards 103
17.9 Avg Yards 25.8
1 Touchdowns 1
41 Long 51
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Denver 405 103 302 3 2 1 2.0 0
Atlanta 363 92 271 4 2 1 1.0 1
Upcoming Games
  • Atlanta will play their next game on the road against New Orleans. The Falcons have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .333 after a loss.
  • Denver will play their next game on the road against Las Vegas. The Broncos have a W/L % of .333 after a win and .500 after a loss.