Tampa Bay at Atlanta
Time: 8:25 PM (ET)
Network: CBS / NFL Network
Thursday’s Week 3 NFL kickoff was not too much of a nail bitter. Actually, it wasn’t even close at all. The Falcons blew out the Buccaneers by a score of 56-14 and were once up 56-0.
Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and a record breaking Devin Hester led the Falcons to their biggest win in franchise history. Ryan threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns, finishing with a completion percentage of .875, which set a new team record. Julio also had a great game, with nine receptions for 161 yards and three touchdowns. Even with all of the offensive scoring the Falcons showed tonight, the real highlight play was a 62-yard punt return for a touchdown by none other than Devin Hester. It was Hester’s 20th return for a TD and made him the new all time leader in return touchdowns, passing up Deion Sanders.
The Bucs looked bad on both sides of the ball tonight, especially defense, which is supposed to be their strong side this year under new coach Lovie Smith. They have now dropped their first three games for the third time in six years and it doesn’t look like they are gonna break that trend any time soon. QB Josh McCown was 5 for 12 with 58 and an pick-6 interception that the Falcons would returned for the score. McCown left the game with a thumb injury and Mike Glennon came in to replace him and he finished the game somewhat strong, going 17 for 24 with 121 yards and one touchdown.
All in all, this game will go down as a big win for the Falcons and just an embarrassment for the Buccaneers.
FINAL: ATL 56 | TB 14