Tyler Shough threw a lot more and got a lot less out of it: 30 of 48 for 286 yards, with his only touchdown pass a late one to Devaughn Vele after the game was decided. The preview pointed to New Orleans' thin defensive front, and it was the story. Kaden Elliss, Anfernee Jennings and Carl Granderson were all inactive, Davon Godchaux left with a groin injury, and Christen Miller was a healthy scratch. Pete Werner played, but one linebacker wasn't enough to hold up the run defense.
New Orleans went off as a short home favorite, which says the market trusted the dome over the injury report. Atlanta ran the ball 33 times between its 2 Robinsons, went up 24-7 at halftime and turned the 4th quarter into garbage time. The Falcons were 7 for 7 on the ground in this matchup's key question, and the Saints had nobody left to answer it.
Bijan finished with 19 carries for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns. Brian Robinson Jr. was the finisher: 14 carries for 62 yards and 3 touchdowns, which gave the 2 backs 5 rushing scores between them. That ties the franchise record. Atlanta outgained New Orleans by 155 yards on the ground. That's 2 straight weeks of the Falcons simply overpowering an opponent's run defense, coming 2 weeks after a 34-3 home loss to Carolina that looked like a different team.
The win wasn't free. Atlanta lost left tackle Jake Matthews to a groin injury and pass rusher Za'Darius Smith to a concussion during the game, and Jared Ivey was inactive. Matthews is the one to watch: this whole offense is built on the run game, and he anchors the line. For the Saints, Alvin Kamara left with a knee issue and came back, and Godchaux's groin now joins a defensive injury list that was already too long before kickoff. Noah Fant, whom the preview had as questionable, ended up inactive, so the tight-end-heavy passing game was down a key piece.
This is a divisional win, and it's Atlanta's 2nd straight blowout. The Falcons are 2-2 and have scored 80 points in their last 2 games. The Saints are 1-3, have lost 2 straight, and the defensive problems behind the Raiders loss are now worse. Shough keeps putting up yards, but New Orleans needs a front 7 before the yards turn into wins.