Falcons come up short, lose to Colts 31-25 in overtime thriller

The Colts improved to 8-2. The Falcons lost their fourth straight game and dropped to 3-6 this season.

The Falcons were hoping that this would be a season that posted a winning record and return to the playoffs. It’s looking more like their eighth consecutive losing season with eight games to play.

“Anytime you face adversity you get to see who you are dealing with as a man,” Falcons safety Jessie Bates III said. “It’s not over until it’s over. You just have to continue to respond and bounce back.”

Falcons coach Raheem Morris was pleased with how the team fought, but couldn’t overcome sporadic play of offense, leaks on the special teams and eventually a run defense that had a major lapse.

“We had plenty of opportunities to win,” Morris said.

The Falcons couldn’t protect a late three-point lead.

“We just have to find a way to get better whether if it’s stopping the run, whether if it’s covering kicks better, returning the ball better or converting on third downs,” Morris said. “All of the things that kind of hurt us today.”

Taylor was a force. He broke loose for an 83-yard touchdown that gave the Colts a 22-17 lead with 6:02 to play.

“He’s a great player,” Morris said. He made people miss. He was able to get yards when it wasn’t there. He was able to get yards when it was there."

“When you get a chance to get out in the open grass with that guy, he is trouble. We let him out there once and he made us pay for it. That’s what great players do.”

The Falcons put together a punishing fourth-quarter touchdown drive take a 25-22 lead with 1:44 to play.

That was after coughing up the lead on Taylor’s 83-yard touchdown run.

“We’ve just got to stay together,” Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. said. “We’ve got to stay together, continue to trust in our game plan each and every week. We’ve just got to execute when it’s needed the most.

Penix had a spotty game. He completed only 12 of 28 passes for 177 yards and a touchdown. He finished with a passer rating of 76.

The Falcons defense finished with seven sacks, seven quarterback hits, four forced fumbles and an interception. However, they had no answer for the hard-charging Taylor.

After the Falcons took the late lead, the kickoff coverage team allowed a 49-yard return by Ameer Abdullah. The Colts were at the Falcons’ 48-yard line, just outside of field goal range.

The defense came up with two sacks, but the Colts reached the 26 and Badgley made a 44-yard field with :25 left on the clock.

After the Falcons’ offense stalled. Falcons receiver Darnell Mooney dropped a pass and Penix had another penalty for intentional grounding, sending the game into overtime.

The Falcons had the ball first in overtime, but were forced to punt.

The Colts kept it simple, just handing the ball to Taylor for the win.

After a run for a yard by Taylor and a 23-yard pass tight end Tyler Warren, Taylor took care of the rest with five straight runs, of 7, 1, 11, 6 and 8 yards for the victory.

Behind some timely passing from Penix and some opportunistic defense, the Falcons held a 14-13 lead at halftime.

Running back Tyler Allgeier scored on a 1-yard run, Penix tossed a 16-yard touchdown pass to London and Gonzalez made both of his extra points for the Falcons.

Badgley missed an extra point and a 53-yard field goal. He was part of the tryout group for the Falcons’ job when they elected to move on from Younghoe Koo in September.

Badgley replaced Spencer Shrader, who suffered a season-ending right knee injury in Week 5.

The Falcons held the Colts on their first possession and then fumbled the ball when Penix and Kyle Pitts had a mix-up on a blitz.

Colts cornerback Camryn Bynum blasted Penix, who fumbled, and linebacker Germaine Pratt recovered at the 23. After a 22-yard pass to Alec Pierce, Taylor scored from a yard out. Badgley missed the extra point wide right.

The Falcons answered with a 1-yard touchdown run by Allgeier. Gonzalez kick made it 7-6.

The Colts fired back with a two-play, 65-yard touchdown drive. Taylor got loose for 28 yards over right tackle, and then Jones hit Pierce in the end zone for a 37-yard touchdown grab with cornerback Dee Alford and safety Xavier Watts in coverage. Badgley’s kick made it 13-7.

Alford left the game with a concussion and did not return. Keith Taylor, who was promoted from the practice squad, took over.

After the Falcons punted, they pinned the Colts back at the 2-yard line. In the second quarter, the Colts got into position for a 53-yard field goal, which was short.

There was an exchange of punts, and the Falcons had the ball at their 45-yard line. Penix lead a five-play, 55-yard drive that was capped by a 16-touchdown pass to London.

Bates had an interception to stop the Colts’ last drive and the Falcons had the ball with :08 on the clock and elected to kneel.

Gonzalez made a 43-yard field goal to put the Falcons up 17-13 with 12:26 left in the third quarter.

Colts kick returner Ashton Dulin busted a 50-yard return to get the ball out to the Falcons’ 44. Falcons outside linebacker James Pearce had a sack and forced a fumble. Jalon Walker recovered.

The Falcons couldn’t do anything with the turnover and were forced to punt.

The Colts drove down to the Falcons’ 5, but linebacker J.D. Bertrand dropped Taylor for a loss on fourth-and-1.

The offense couldn’t move the ball and punted. The Colts were stopped on the 16 as Brandon Dorlus had the fifth sack of the game. Badgley made a 34-yard field goal attempt to make it 17-16 with 9:00 to play.

The offense stalled after picking up one first down. Pinion pinned the Colts at the 9-yard line. After an 8-yard pass to Warren, Taylor broke loose for a mega-run, the largest run in the NFL season and longest touchdown Colts history.

“I just seen him running honestly,” Walker said. “It look like everybody on the field, going back to watch the play on the sidelines, everybody relaxed. Even the Colts relaxed. So, we just all have to play sound, technical football.”

The Falcons are set to host the Panthers at 1 p.m. Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.