ATLANTA – A last-minute interception by Foye Oluokun was the latest piece of evidence that the Atlanta Falcons are learning to win close games in their first season under coach Arthur Smith.
Matt Ryan threw a tiebreaking 12-yard touchdown pass to Hayden Hurst early in the fourth quarter, and Atlanta held on late to beat the Detroit Lions 20-16 on Sunday and preserve its slim playoff hopes.
“It’s a gritty group for sure,” Ryan said of the Falcons (7-8), who went 4-12 last season and haven’t had a winning record or reached the playoffs since the 2017 season.
With the NFL having moved to a 17-game regular season this year, Atlanta can finish above .500 by winning out against the Buffalo Bills and the New Orleans Saints – and might even make the postseason as a wild card in the NFC.
“It hasn’t been perfect by any stretch of the imagination throughout the year, but when we’ve been in one-score games we’ve done a good job,” said Ryan, a 14th-year pro with a history of fourth-quarter comebacks that earned him the nickname “Matty Ice.”