NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- For 59 minutes Sunday the Falcons clawed for a chance to get a win over the Titans. But, as it sometimes does in the NFL, the game came down to one snap.
In this case, it was a sack on fourth-and-goal at the 4-yard line with 60 seconds to play that ended a late Falcons rally to tie the game and Atlanta (1-4) fell, 20-13 at LP Field.
Fittingly, that one play was a collection of many of the game's story lines.
The Falcons got the ball deep in Titans territory after Demorrio Williams broke up a Tennessee punt. Six plays later, Titans defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch, the leader of the team's second-ranked run defense, effectively ended the game by getting a hold of Falcons quarterback Byron Leftwich's leg and yanking him down as receivers broke toward the end zone.
Leftwich, who started the game as the team's third, or emergency, quarterback came into the game in the fourth quarter.
A former first-round pick who hadn't played in a game since the Jacksonville Jaguars released him before the season, Leftwich missed on a few passes, but gave the Falcons a chance deep in the red zone as the game came to a close.
"I thought Joey (Harrington) got hit a lot and I thought there were some plays there that he didn't make late in the third quarter and that maybe a change would give us a spark and give us some energy and I made the decision to put Byron in," Head Coach Bobby Petrino said, adding the team has made no decisions about the immediate future at the quarterback position.
"For me, personally, it was good (have) that opportunity to come back and score to tie that football game up," Leftwich said. "As a quarterback, you live for those moments. We just came up short today."
Leftwich admitted he was a tad rusty.
"Anytime you miss as much time away from an actual game as I have it is tough," he said. "But I have played enough football so all it takes is one or two plays to get into your rhythm."
The Falcons defense and special teams left their mark in the game and gave the Falcons multiple chances to win by taking the ball away from the Titans five times. On offense, however, Atlanta struggled to take full advantage of the opportunities.
Three interceptions on defense turned into six points on field goals. Three missed field goal, two on long tries by Michael Koenen, added to the frustration.
"That's a tough loss for us," Petrino said. "Our defense, I thought, played extremely well. (They) scored a touchdown, gave us all types of opportunities to score points and we couldn't get it done offensively."
The game started well for the Falcons, who got a score from the defense on the Titans first drive. Pro Bowl cornerback DeAngelo Hall picked up a LenDale White fumble, returned it 56 yards for a score and gave the Falcons an early 7-0 lead.
"The defense made a lot of big plays today to put the offense in great situations," Williams said after the game. "It's been a while since I have seen a game like this. A team that makes the most turnovers usually loses the game and today we struggled a bit."
Ironically, a Falcons turnover spelled the difference in the game. Tennessee defensive back Vincent Fuller picked off Harrington with one minute remaining in the third quarter and returned it 76 yards for a touchdown.
"I have been through worse than this before," Harrington said after the game when asked about the quarterback switch. "This was a frustrating game because, offensively, we didn't help our defense out. There are no individual stories here. Individually I feel awful because I didn't help our defense today. They gave us so many opportunities and we didn't take advantage of it. It is our job to hold up our end of the bargain."
Atlanta went 4-of-18 on third down (0-of-7 in the first half) and never got the run game going. The team ran the ball for 50 yards in the first half, but 49 of those yards came on a fake punt that featured reserve running back Artose Pinner darting deep into Titans territory. That play set up a field goal and a 10-7 lead for Atlanta, but the Birds would lead by no more than three the rest of the game.
The Falcons finished the game with nine first downs, 198 yards of offense (99 rushing). Leftwich and Harrington combined to go 18-of-39 for 99 yards and two interceptions.
The Falcons defense stayed on the field for more than 15 minutes in the first half (29:49 seconds for the game) and held the Titans to 249 yards on offense. Most impressive were the turnovers the unit forced, including an interception by linebacker Michael Boley and a fourth-quarter pick by Williams' that set up one of two late cracks at the end zone for the Falcons.
Special teams play was highlighted by a 76-yard kickoff return by Jerious Norwood, a forced fumble by Antoine Harris and a fumble recovery by unit captain Corey McIntyre.
The Titans (3-1) rallied late in the second quarter and used a Rob Bironas field goal to tie the game as the first half expired. They took the ball to open the second half, but turned it over. The Falcons connected on a field goal to go up 13-10, but finished the game with two missed field goals, two punts, two interceptions and one possession that ended on downs.
"In every game we've had a chance to win," Hall said. "Our ultimate goal is to be in the game and finish it in the fourth quarter. Obviously today we couldn't finish."
INJURY UPDATE: The team also lost the services of left tackle Wayne Gandy late in the game. Gandy hit the turf quickly after a play doubled-over in pain. Petrino said it "didn't look good" and he is concerned about the position given an injury history with right tackle Todd Weiner. Undrafted rookie Renardo Foster replaced Weiner earlier in the game.
Stay with AtlantaFalcons.com for more coverage and injury updates on Monday...
MORE FROM THE FALCONS-TITANS GAME:
- GAMEDAY: All the coverage from the Titans-Falcons game
- STATS AND PLAY-BY-PLAY: NFL.com Game Center
- GAME NOTES: Updates and injury news from the LP Field press box
- INACTIVES: Inactives and starters from Week 5
- QUOTABLE: Thoughts on the game from Falcons players and coaches
- VIDEO: Head Coach Bobby Petrino
- VIDEO: Quarterback Joey Harrington
- VIDEO: Quarterback Byron Leftwich
- HIGHLIGHTS: Game highlights from NFL Network
