ATLANTA — Coming off a Week 1 flop in Philadelphia, Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian was the subject of significant criticism both from fans and well-respected analysts like Kurt Warner. Sarkisian is in a tough spot. Because he took over an offense that set all kinds of records in 2016, any regression like the Falcons experienced in 2017 was going to be pinned on him. It doesn’t help that he came from the college game with little NFL pedigree. And there’s no doubt some of his play calling, particularly in the red zone, has given the skeptics good material. But the NFL is also a game of execution, and the Falcons simply executed better in a 31-24 victory over the Carolina Panthers. Quarterback Matt Ryan, who was oddly inaccurate against the Eagles, bounced back with a strong game, completing 23 of 28 passes for 272 yards against a young Panthers secondary. He also had two rushing touchdowns for the first time in his career. Even without star running back Devonta Freeman, who was sidelined by a knee contusion, the Falcons were able to run the ball consistently with Tevin Coleman racking up 107 yards on 16 carries and rookie Ito Smith chipping in 46 yards on nine attempts. Perhaps the biggest relief of all is that the Falcons were 4-for-4 in the red zone, an area where they converted just 50% of their possessions into touchdowns last season, ranking in the bottom-third of the NFL. Atlanta led 24-10 before Cam Newton found Torrey Smith for a 3-yard touchdown with 11:23 remaining. But the Falcons responded just 4:06 later, finishing off a seven-play, 75-yard drive touchdown drive with Ryan’s twisting, tumbling scramble into the end zone between two defenders. Still, Atlanta had to fend off one final attempt from Newton, who got the ball back with 1:48 remaining and a chance to tie with a touchdown. Newton drove Carolina from the 16-yard line down to the Falcons’ 31, giving him one more shot to the end zone with five seconds left. But Newton’s pass to DJ Moore was knocked down by Robert Alford. Here are three other things we learned from Panthers-Falcons: Calvin Ridley had a coming-out party: The Falcons used their first-round draft pick this year on Ridley under the theory that he could add even more stress to defenses that already had to account for Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu, as well as tight end Austin Hooper. Though Ridley was quiet in the season opener, the Alabama product showed that he can be a legitimate option for Ryan with four receptions for 64 yards, including his first career touchdown. Though Jones is still the primary option (he was targeted nine times by Ryan with five catches), Ridley’s emergence could really make defenses rethink how they want to defend Atlanta. Damontae Kazee is probably headed for a suspension: The Falcons’ safety depth took a huge hit when Pro Bowler Keanu Neal suffered a torn ACL in Week 1. That injury put Kazee, a second-year player out of San Diego State, into a starting role. But the Falcons may have to go looking for more secondary help, at least in the short term, as Kazee could very well be facing a suspension after his late hit against Newton early in the second quarter. After Newton took off for a first down, sliding at the Atlanta 23, Kazee came in very late and hit the quarterback helmet-to-helmet, causing a brief fracas among the two teams. Though tempers cooled down after a few seconds, Newton was shaken up and Kazee was ejected from the game. While Newton wasn’t seriously injured (he came back in for the next play), it was a scary moment for Panthers fans and the kind of dangerous, unnecessary hit the NFL has made clear it will take seriously. Without Kazee, the Falcons had to utilize Jordan Richards, whom they acquired from the Patriots in a trade right before the regular season. They will need Richards, who struggled in New England, to step up and play a major role if Kazee is out any length of time. Carolina’s passing game wasn’t effective without Greg Olsen: It appears the Panthers tight end will be out another 4-5 weeks with a foot injury, according to multiple reports, which could be really bad news for Newton. The Panthers’ receiving corps at this point is just a collection of guys, and the lack of a true No. 1 option was noticeable as Newton’s most reliable target was running back Christian McCaffrey (13 receptions, 92 yards) coming out of the backfield. Devin Funchess had 49 yards on five receptions, but the lack of a true deep threat meant Carolina couldn’t really test the back end of a depleted Atlanta defense. Follow Dan Wolken on Twitter @DanWolken.<doc-sep>The Atlanta Falcons rebounded in a huge way by defeating the Carolina Panthers today, 31-24. The Falcons made late, momentum-changing plays on both sides of the ball and got a victory over their division rivals. While the Panthers made it interesting, the Falcons held on, deflecting a potential Cam Newton touchdown pass in the final seconds to bring their record to 1-1. Here are five takeaways from the win: 1. Matt Ryan bounced back Ryan raised a variety of questions among pundits and fans with last week’s loss to the Eagles. Today, Ryan answered them, showcasing the efficiency that made him the NFL’s MVP in 2016. He finished the contest having completed 23 of 28 passes for 272 yards and two touchdowns, plus an interception. Ryan also found the end zone twice running the ball.<doc-sep>
Matt Ryan has quietly added his name to a number of NFL records. Those are usually centered around passing efficiency, yards per attempt, passing yards, and things like that. Today’s game against the Carolina Panthers put Ryan is some unusual company. Ryan showed his wheels and rushed for two touchdowns. That’s one way to improve a slumping red zone offense! Here’s the specifics. Congratulations to #MattRyan on becoming just the 3rd player in history (1950-2018, Min. 25 attempts) to complete 80.0%+ of his passes AND rush for 2 TDs in the same game.#MattRyan (9/16/18 vs. #Panthers)#CamNewton (1/3/16 vs. #Buccs)#JeffGarcia (11/12/00 vs. #Chiefs) pic.twitter.com/nz55uuco21 — Ryan Michael (@theryanmichael) September 16, 2018 That’s right, Ryan matched both Cam Newton and Jeff Garcia way back during his time in San Francisco. Ryan may have some irregular games. Against the season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles, he never looked comfortable in the pocket. He completed under 50 percent of his passes for the first time since 2011. It was the 11th worst game of his career based on his quarterback rating. The most consistent thing is Ryan will battle back after a bad game, and this was no different. Ryan made a punishing Carolina Panthers defense look more like the 2014 Falcons defense. You remember the one that was the worst in the league and still pumped in fake crowd noise. It was a pretty masterful performance, with Ryan completing 23 of 28 passes for 272 yards for an 82.1 completion percentage, 9.71 yards per attempt, two passing touchdowns, and four attempts for 18 yards and two awesome rushing touchdowns. It felt like a return to 2016. We saw the return to pre-snap motion, sweet play-action bootlegs, and working down the pass catching options: Ryan tossed to eight different players. Ryan showed some concerned fans that he’s still got it. Seriously, that stat line is just silly, and the Panthers are no pushovers.