The Falcons went for the kill shot early against the Panthers and it backfired.
Up14-0 in the second quarter, the Falcons went for a fourth-and-three on the four yard line. Matt Ryan threw an incomplete pass to Roddy White to end Atlanta’s chances of going up three scores.
One reason why Falcons coach Mike Smith went for it is because he knows the Panthers offense will struggle to respond. Carolina actually moved the ball on the ensuing drive, but a fumble by Mike Goodson have the ball back to Atlanta’s offense.
The Falcons will be the top seed in the NFC with a win.
UPDATE: Again in field goal range, the Falcons got stuffed on fourth-and-one on their next drive. The score remains 14-0.