PHILADELPHIA -- Matt Ryan watched plenty of Donovan McNabb's heroics growing up in suburban Philadelphia. Sunday, he got a front row seat.
The Falcons spent much of the first half keeping McNabb and the Eagles high-flying offense on the ground. Atlanta didn't allow a first-quarter point for the fifth time this season and picked up two sacks, a forced fumble and a turnover in the first 30 minutes.
But McNabb rebounded toward the end of the second quarter and got Pro Bowler Brian Westbrook involved in the offense late to send the Birds back to Atlanta with a 27-14 defeat.
The Pro Bowl quarterback threw for 253 yards and rushed for a touchdown in the game.
“It’s a tough loss," Ryan said. "We had a chance with a couple minutes to go to still get into it and win the game, but [we] fell a little bit short so we’re disappointed, but you’ve got to bounce back. We’ve got a bunch of games coming up; we're out in Oakland next week, and as difficult as the loss is, you’ve got to re-shift your focus and get ready to play next week.”
The Birds rattled McNabb in the early going, holding the Eagles to a 33-percent success rate on third down and coming away with a pair of sacks -- one from upstart defensive end Jamaal Anderson -- in the first half. Rookie linebacker Curtis Lofton would later force a fumble.
Ryan gave the Falcons an early lead with 8:56 remaining in the first half when he threaded a pass between two Eagles defenders and into the hands of Roddy White. White scampered toward the end zone for a 55-yard score and a 7-0 lead.
But Philadelphia responded with 20 unanswered points, including scoring drives of 60, 70 and 69 yards. Twice McNabb scrambled for key first downs. The Falcons did not record a sack in the second half.
McNabb turned from prolific passer to game-manager as the afternoon progressed, finding openings in the Falcons zone defense for short to medium gains and handing the ball off to Westbrook. The All-Pro rushed for 63 yards on 10 carries in the first half and finished with 22 carries for 167 yards. He also had six catches for 42 yards, one of six Eagles receivers with two or more catches.
"It never felt like we were out of the game, even when we didn’t get that touchdown when we needed it, it still felt like we stopped them to get a chance to put some more points on the board and that’s what we did," defensive end John Abraham said. "Like I said, it’s part of the game and everybody played well, it was a tough fought game. I think everybody got a lot of bumps and bruises from the game, but it definitely was a good game.”
The Falcons run game sputtered and suffered from untimely penalties. Starting left tackle Sam Baker missed the game with a hip injury and was replaced by Todd Weiner. Weiner would leave with an injury and was replaced by Quinn Ojinnaka. Michael Turner rushed for 58 yards on 17 carries.
“We want to run the football," Head Coach Mike Smith said. "I think anytime you go into a game, rushing the football effectively opens things up for the rest of your offense. They did a very nice job up front in terms of putting eight men on the line. I thought they did a nice job stunting guys through gaps. We really were close. I think when we go back and look at it like in any football game we’re going to see that there were opportunities for some big plays that we just weren’t able to convert.”
Ryan threw for 277 yards in his seventh career start but also had a pair of interceptions. The defense held the Eagles after the first turnover but Ryan's second mistake came in the end zone, eliminating a red-zone scoring chance.
“We had worked on that fade pass all week in practice and Matt threw it up there and really I should have batted the ball down," said White, who had 113 receiving yards. "I think on that play, I had the responsibility to help him out. We thought we were going to put some points on the board and we let it get away from us. I put that play on myself, because I really should have knocked that down.”
The Birds would get another shot, however.
A late goal-line stand held the Eagles to a field goal and kept it a two-possesion game with 7:57 remaining. Ryan led a no-huddle offense into the red zone on the next series and found White with a second touchdown with less than four minutes to play.
Trailing 20-14, the Falcons defense stepped up with a key three-and-out but an odd turn of events kept the Birds offense from getting a shot at the win.
Return man Adam Jennings decided at the last second not to field the punt after the Eagles' three-and-out drive. Officials ruled Jennings touched the ball and the muffed punt was recovered by the Eagles. The Falcons did not have a timeout left and, by rule, could not challenge the play. Replays in the press box showed Jennings did not touch the ball.
“I do not think that I did touch the ball," Jenning said. "I have to make a split second decision sometimes when a ball is kicked my way. I felt like I played the ball the right way, because I did not touch it because I could not get to it. I backed off the punt and cannot control the calls that are made out there. I just want to keep going out there and playing hard.”
Three plays later Westbrook rushed over the left side for a 39-yard, game-clinching touchdown.
MORE FROM THE FALCONS-EAGLES GAME:
- GAMEDAY LIVE: Complete game coverage from AtlantaFalcons.com
- GAMEDAY RT: AF.com crew gives you a behind-the-scenes look at the road
- GAME RECAP: First-quarter flashes fade in road loss
- GAME NOTES: Official game notes from the Lincoln Financial Field press box
- GAME CENTER: Stats, play-by-play and more from NFL.com
- TRANSCRIPTS: Head Coach Mike Smith | Falcons | Eagles
- GAME BLOG: Live updates from the press box in the FalconsLIFE blog
- J. MIKE'S MISSIVES: Blog and comment from the AF.com Managing Editor
- FORUMS: Talk about the game with other fans on FalconsLIFE
- VIDEO: Head Coach Mike Smith | Matt Ryan
- NFL NETWORK: Highlights | Short | Roddy White | Matt Ryan
- INACTIVES: Inactive players and probable starters from the game
- REVIEW AND RESPOND: Track the game and ask questions
