Falcons turn primetime doubters into believers behind Bijan Robinson's back-to-back masterpieces
When football fans saw three straight Primetime games on the NFL schedule for the Atlanta Falcons, there were some social media eye rolls, sighs and more, and who could blame them?
The Falcons, who started third-string quarterback Cooper Rush and were sitting at 0-2 at the start of the year, didn’t really make for must-watch television under the bright lights of a nationally-televised contest.
But that’s the beautiful thing about the NFL: each week is a chance to prove everyone wrong, especially this early in the season. The Falcons are doing just that, and now they’re can’t-miss entertainment on the gridiron.
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Why? The man in the backfield wearing No. 7 on his red and black jersey: running back Bijan Robinson.
In Week 3 against the Green Bay Packers, Robinson, who had modest showings for his standards in the Falcons’ two losses to begin the year, broke out for 194 yards on 29 carries with two touchdowns in the blowout victory at Lambeau Field.
Once again on the road against a divisional foe in the New Orleans Saints, a team celebrating the 20th anniversary of the "Domecoming" where they emotionally reopened their beloved Superdome following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina against these same Falcons, Robinson put up another magnificent stat line.
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On just 19 carries, Robinson finished the game with 145 yards rushing and two more touchdowns to help lead the way to a 45-17 thrashing to move to 2-2 on the season. And though they have shown tons of fight through three weeks, the 1–3 Saints were stumped all night long on home turf.
Robinson’s agility, explosiveness and consistent running is just a joy to watch for those who love the great game of football. His first touch of the game went for 59 yards and a touchdown on a run that saw him hit 21 mph without looking like he broke a sweat. Then, it’s the tough-nosed running in the red area that can also break the spirit of a defense, as he made it 14-0 in the first quarter with a four-yard touchdown run.
And just as they did last week, the Falcons are all about spreading the wealth. Brian Robinson Jr., Bijan Robinson’s backup, had more touchdowns than his counterpart, scoring three times and rushing for 62 yards on 14 carries in this one.
Finally, there’s Michael Penix Jr., whose job is to conduct the offense in a timely manner and make some key throws to keep drives going. Thankfully for Atlanta, he’s back healthy and doing just that, going 15-of-20 for 223 yards with a touchdown pass to Jahan Dotson to get himself involved in the scoring. He also loved tossing the rock to Drake London, who matched Bijan Robinson with 194 yards through the air last week in Green Bay, as he finished with five catches for 96 yards.
Of course, the Falcons’ offensive line has a large share in making this magic happen, and the defense for Atlanta has been solid over the past two weeks to allow the ball to get back into the hands of Penix, Bijan Robinson and more as much as possible.
But there’s no denying that watching this Falcons team over the past two weeks has been pure joy because one of the best players in the sport has put on back-to-back spectacles in Primetime, and there’s still one more game to go on Sunday night against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 5.
"I love the Primetime games under the lights. It brings out a different energy, and I just love this team," Bijan Robinson said after the game.