With just 23 seconds left in the game, Chris Redman connected with Roddy White on a touchdown pass of 5 yards to give the Falcons a 20-17 win over Tampa Bay on Sunday after they had lost their offensive stars Michael Turner and Matt Ryan to injuries.
Atlanta (6-5) was in deep trouble following another missed field goal attempt by Jason Elam. This one came from 43 yards away, and Tampa Bay (1-10) drove into Falcons territory.
However, with 2:30 left to play Connor Barth narrowly missed a field goal attempt from 51 yards to give Atlanta another opportunity. After taking over for Ryan following the injury to his big right toe in the first series of the game, Redman led the Falcons on a drive of 59 yards that just might have saved Atlanta’s season.
On fourth down and goal from the five yard line, Redman connected with White over the middle on a slant play while Derrick Roberson, cornerback, futilely swiped at the ball.
Early third quarter Corey Lynch blocked a punt to set up an 8 yard pass from Josh Freeman to Carnell Williams for a touchdown to give Tampa Bay the lead 17-10.
Tampa Bay’s lead almost held up. During the third quarter Atlanta lost Turner. The top runner for the Falcons appeared to have suffered a reinjury of his right ankle, an injury that had prevented him from playing during last week’s game.
Redman, who was a starter for the Falcons in 2007 following the suspension of Michael Vick, had only played in a few plays during the two years since Ryan had arrived.
However with Ryan in street clothes watching the game from the sideline with his right foot in a special shoe, Redman led the Falcons to a comeback victory in a game that Atlanta had to absolutely have to keep their NFC playoff hopes alive after losing four out of five games.
Redman passed to Tony Gonzalez four times for 34 yards. Atlanta received a huge break when Roberson got called for a holding penalty on a pass that was incomplete to the opposite side on the field.
However, Tampa Bay only needed to make one stop to get their second victory after Redman had three incomplete passes in a row from the five yard line. On the last try, White hauled a pass in and was then mobbed by teammates Eric Weems and Gonzales.
On Tampa Bay’s sideline Raheem Morris, head coach, kneeled in disbelief. Earlier this week, the embattled rookie head coach had taken the defensive play calling duties over after he had demoted Jim Bates, the defensive coordinator. The move almost paid instant dividends. The Bucs, instead, suffered yet another crushing loss this season.
Redman, despite suffering five sacks, completed 23 of his 41 passes for a total of 243 yards. He flipped a quick pass over to Jerious Norwood. It was just slight longer than a hand off. However, the play ended up as a touchdown of 22 yards to give Atlanta an early lead of 10-0.
Atlanta fought to tie the game up before halftime. Tampa Bay quarterback Josh Freeman threw deep to Antonio Bryant on the left sideline. Bryant lept up to grab the ball from Tye Hill, Falcons cornerback, and then rolled over into the end zone after realizing he had not been touched to score a touchdown of 42 yards. Then Barth kicked a field goal of 39 yards with only 20 seconds left in the first half.
Coming off last week’s performance where he had four turnovers in the Buccaneers 31 point loss to the Saints, Freeman bounced back in the fourth start of his career. He went 20 out of 29 for a total of 50 yards, with no turnovers. He had one fumble but managed to recover the ball himself.
