FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan gave credit to the Miami Dolphins for coming up with a big play after his last-minute interception secured the Dolphins' 20-17 come-from-behind win.
Down by that score with 47 seconds remaining, Ryan attempted a down field pass to tight end Austin Hooper between two defenders on first-and-10 from the Dolphins' 26-yard-line. Dolphins rookie cornerback Cordrea Tankersley got his hand in to deflect the pass, which was then picked off by safety Reshad Jones.
"I felt like I made the right read in that situation, put it where I wanted to, and that's how the game goes sometimes," Ryan said. "I'm disappointed with it, but we're going to continue to battle, and I think we'll be better for it and hopefully more mentally and physically tough as a football team moving forward."
Ryan finished the game completing 24 of 35 passes for 248 yards with one touchdown and a passer rating of 86.4. The interception was Ryan's sixth of the season, all in the last three games.
The Falcons, who saw offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian calling plays from the box rather than on the sideline, didn't score in the second half. They played too conservative after two, 40-plus-yard plays in the first half. Julio Jones, who finished with six catches for 72 yards and no touchdowns on seven targets, wasn't targeted as much as you thought he would be. It appeared Jones was about to be double covered while working out of the slot on the final play.
And, as Jones implied in his postgame comments, the Falcons went away from the running game, with Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman combining for 82 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown (by Coleman) in the first half. In the second half, they had six rushes for 18 yards combined.
"Well, I thought we put ourselves behind schedule," Ryan said of the second half. "You know, the first drive of the second half, I think the first play we got backed up with a sack and did a good job on second and third down, but we were a little bit too far behind the chains to come away with a first down, so that was just an execution standpoint. And then again, on the the second drive of the second half, we got into field goal range. We're down there in field goal range, moving the ball, penalty, and another sack, and we kind of got out of a spot where we could put points on the board.
"I think that was critical early (second half). I thought we did a nice job at the end of the game getting down into giving ourselves a chance to win that football game, and just a disappointing way that it ended."
Ryan was asked about being aggressive on the game's final drive, considering the Falcons could have tied it with a field goal. Remember, the Falcons got criticized for being too aggressive offensively in the Super Bowl loss to the Patriots, passing the ball at key times when they could have run it.
"Again, I thought it was the right decision," Ryan said of the final play. "Aggressive or [not], I understood we were in field goal range to tie the game. I also understood that we had plenty of time on the clock, and it was a throw that I felt good about. I let it rip, and again, just a good play by them. Sometimes that's how it goes."