Falcons hold on to beat Cardinals, 26-19

“Absolutely outstanding,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said. “We wanted to come out and be able to run the football on this team. Wanted to be able to throw the passes to people, let them catch and run. Bijan Robinson is absolutely a phenomenal player.”

Quarterback Kirk Cousins was 21-of-35 for 197 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception. He finished with a passer rating of 82.7.

“We’re thrilled,” Cousins said. “We’re going to enjoy the flight home. But we’re all looking at each other (like), ‘Hey, could you have done this? Could I have done that?’ That’s just the emotion that you feel right now.”

The Falcons overcame a double-digit deficit on their way to victory.

The Falcons improved to 6-9 on the season. The Cardinals, who have lost seven straight games, dropped to 3-12.

The Falcons had not won a game in Arizona since the 2001 season.

Robinson starred at Salpointe Catholic High in Tucson, Arizona before playing in college at Texas. He’s in his third season in the NFL after being drafted eighth overall by the Falcons in 2023.

Robinson got loose on a 29-yard run in the third quarter to go over 142 scrimmage yards and join Jamal Anderson (2,165 scrimmage yards in 1998) and William Andrews (2,036 in 1981, along with 2,176 in 1983) in the Falcons’ 2,000-scrimmage yards club.

“Just doing as much as I can for my team, for my offense,” Robinson said. " …The ups and downs are learning lessons. How we come out of that is what drives us as players. For me, I always take these ... yeah, it’s a cool achievement individually, but I’d like to give it to those guys. Give it to the offensive line."

Robinson did want to put on a show in his home state.

“Yeah, it means a lot,” Robinson said. “To do it in Arizona in front of a lot of people who have supported me. My family and everybody being here. For me, this was a huge moment.”

Robinson was dazzling for most of the game, including a 41-yard reception.

The Falcons won back-to-back games for just the second time this season. They had victories over Washington and Buffalo in Weeks 4 and 6 sandwiched around the bye week.

The Cardinals jumped out to a 10-0 lead, but the Falcons battled back to make it 16-16 at halftime.

Cardinals’ kicker Chad Ryland made a 50-yard field goal on their opening drive. Cardinals’ cornerback Denzel Burke ended the Falcons’ first offensive possession with an interception.

Wide receiver Michael Wilson came down with a catch in tight coverage from Falcons’ cornerback Cobee Bryant for a 32-yard touchdown. Ryland’s point after made it 10-0.

The teams traded field goals as the Cardinals held a 13-3 lead.

The Falcons then zipped down the field in three plays with Robinson getting loose for 41 and 11 yards before catching a 13-yard touchdown pass to make it 13-10.

Ryland added a 25-yard field goal for the Cardinals to make it 16-10.

The Falcons, with Cousins spreading the ball around, drove down for a touchdown. Cousins tossed a 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kyle Pitts to tie the game at 16. It stayed tied after Calais Campbell blocked the extra-point attempt.

The Cardinals marched down the field in 19 seconds to set up Ryland for a 50-yard field goal attempt that hit the right upright and bounced away.

The Falcons had been accepting the football to start the games this season, but won the toss and deferred. They decided to take the ball to start the third quarter instead.

The offense, which had scored points on three consecutive drives after opening the game with an interception, was on the move to open the second half.

They had to overcome a holding penalty by Chris Lindstrom that wiped away a 20-yard gain by Robinson. The Falcons also needed a fourth-and-2 pass to Pitts to drive down to the Cardinals’ 26. The drive stalled at the 21, and Gonzalez made a 40-yard field goal to give the Falcons their first lead of the game, 19-16, with 7:35 left in the third quarter.

Ryland missed a 44-yard field-goal attempt wide right.

The Falcons answered with a 12-play, 66-yard touchdown drive that took 6:14 off the clock. Cousins had a 1-yard touchdown run as play moved into the fourth quarter to make it 26-16.

They tried a tackle-eligible play to Jake Matthews before the score. He was open, but the pass was high.

“I’ve never caught a touchdown in my life,” Matthews said. “Not exactly my forte, but I’ve got to make a play there.”

The defense got a stop, but the offense gave the ball back on a fumble when Charlie Woerner and Tyler Allgeier ran into each other on a fourth-and-1.

Ryland added a 34-yard field goal to make it 26-19.

The Falcons got stuffed on third-and-2 and fourth-and-1 as the Cardinals got the ball back at their 40 with 2:05 to play and a chance to tie or win the game with a touchdown and two-point conversion.

But Henderson came to the rescue with an interception.

“It’s exciting just to get a win with the guys,” Henderson said. “It’s huge.”

Pitts continued his fine play, catching 7 of 9 targets for 57 yards, including a 5-yard touchdown pass.

“That’s just want makes football fun,” Pitts said. “Trying to get a win each week, knowing how hard this league is.”

Wide receiver Drake London returned after missing the past four games with a knee injury. He caught three passes for 27 yards.

“Drake looked good,” Morris said. “He went out there and played for us and battled.”

The Falcons are set to the host the Rams at 8:15 p.m. on Monday Night Football, Dec. 29 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.