Michael Penix leads J.J. McCarthy in first quarter of Sunday Night Football

Atlanta didn’t have any giveaways in Week 1, and now it has its first of the 12 months.

Falcons must be feeling just a little nervous proper now. Last week, Atlanta dominated in yardage and time of possession and nonetheless misplaced. The Falcons are doing each once more tonight however can’t give themselves a much bigger cushion early.

What appeared like an extended reception for Atlanta’s Drake London as an alternative was a fumble restoration for Minnesota because the Vikings hope the turnover will assist get them again into this recreation. Eric Wilson punched the ball from London’s grasp as quickly as he had caught the 20-yard reception. Vikings take over with 1:28 left in the opening quarter.

The Falcons are outgaining the Vikings 81-8 proper now, and are averaging 7.4 yards per play in comparison with Minnesota’s 1.1.

However, Atlanta has little to point out for it on the scoreboard, solely main 6-0 with underneath 5 minutes to go in the first. As the Vikings confirmed final week, letting them hold round could possibly be harmful.

The Vikings solely went backward on their second drive of the evening, compelled to punt after three ineffectual downs. After two possessions the Vikings have practically as many performs (seven) and yards from scrimmage (eight).

Under coordinator Brian Flores, Minnesota’s protection is named a unit that likes to dictate the fashion of play usually via liberal use of blitzes. It’s a technique that places offenses on the defensive. But tonight the Falcons have been in a position to gash the Vikings, averaging 7.4 yards per play via two drives. They solely have three factors to point out for it, nevertheless.

Atlanta as soon as once more stalled on a 3rd down contained in the pink zone.

Michael Penix threw incomplete on third-and-5 from the Minnesota 10, and the Falcons settled for his or her second discipline purpose of the sport.

Despite dominating offensively thus far, Atlanta is up just one rating.

Whoa!

Minnesota tried a fourth-down conversion from its personal territory and was stopped for a loss on 4th-and-inches.

The Falcons at the moment are already driving contained in the Vikings 20-yard line.

By main a comeback win in Chicago in his first profession NFL begin, Minnesota’s quarterback grew to become the first quarterback since Steve Young in 1985 to beat a double-digit fourth-quarter deficit to win in his NFL debut, per NBC Sports analysis.

Parker Romo kicked the sphere purpose for the Falcons on their opening drive.

Younhoe Koo, who has been Atlanta’s kicker for many of the staff’s video games since 2021, was benched this week after making solely 2-of-3 discipline targets in Week 1.

The Falcons are up 3-0 after a discipline purpose on their opening drive.

Atlanta had a third-and-5 however went backward after a timeout and a false begin penalty. The Minnesota crowd undoubtedly appeared to have an impact there.

J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota’s 22-year-old, second-year quarterback, is going through a bunch of new challenges this week. For one, he simply gained his first NFL begin final Monday. Four days later, he grew to become a father to a child boy, Rome. News of his pending fatherhood emerged after Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell advised reporters that McCarthy had left apply early — to be together with his fiancee in time for the start. His fiancee later posted a photograph to social media of the brand new household.

“It’s an awesome moment as a father myself to see his reaction to it on the best day of his life,” O’Connell mentioned. The coach mentioned his recommendation to the brand new dad included tips about what to say and what to keep away from speaking to his fiancee about throughout their experience to the hospital.

“Quarterback development,” O’Connell joked.

Robinson completed the Falcons’ Week 1 loss with 24 speeding yards. He had 47 yards on his first 3 carries tonight.

… And “Sunday Night Football” is underway! Atlanta’s first play from scrimmage was a giant run into Vikings territory by Bijan Robinson.

Linebacker Blake Cashman injured his hamstring in a Week 1 win at Chicago and was put in injured reserve by Minnesota this week, a distinction that can require him to overlook a minimal of 4 video games. It’s a very troublesome loss for the Vikings as a result of Cashman carried a accountability of calling performs for the protection on the sphere.

When Falcons quarterback Michael Penix discovered operating again Bijan Robinson in the flat for a brief move in Week 1, the route was anticipated to realize round 16 yards, in keeping with the NFL’s Next Gen Stats. Instead, Robinson took it 50 yards for a landing, making it the very best yards-after-catch above anticipated of the season’s opening week.

After struggling a shoulder damage late in Atlanta’s Week 1 loss, receiver Drake London is anticipated to play towards Minnesota, Falcons coach Raheem Morris advised reporters Wednesday.

“That’s not saying that he (will ultimately be available to play), but when you ask me do I expect him to play? Of course,” Morris mentioned. “Drake is the ultimate tough guy. When he says he’s going to go practice, that tells you a lot.”

On a team-high 15 targets against Tampa, London caught a team-high eight passes for 55 yards.

Chris Simms and Connor Rogers analyze the shifts to the NFC North winner odds on DraftKings Sportsbook and how it’s “solely going to get higher” for the Vikings, who at the moment are the second favourite to win the division.

Younghoe Koo lost his job as Atlanta’s starting kicker entering Week 2 after missing a potentially game-tying kick from 44 yards a week again in an eventual Falcons loss to Tampa Bay.

Koo has been the Falcons since 2017 and their starter since 2019. Now that distinction goes to Parker Romo, who was elevated from the team’s practice squad.

Koo made 154 of 174 kicks during his first six seasons, an accuracy of 88.5 percent. Since last season, that has slipped to 73 percent.

The Atlanta Falcons take on the Minnesota Vikings on “Sunday Night Football,” and “FNIA” previews the defensive prowess of each groups and which QB can deal with the strain greatest.

Jac Collinsworth, Rodney Harrison and Tony Dungy talk about Younghoe Koo and other kickers struggling during Week 1, sharing why having “a kicker that does not come via in these massive moments” can actually damage NFL groups.

Jay Croucher and Drew Dinsick preview a “Sunday Night Football” matchup between the Falcons and the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium, sharing why Atlanta’s defense “is de facto the important thing” and “that is going to be a reasonably shut recreation.”

The Atlanta Falcons take on the Minnesota Vikings on “Sunday Night Football,” and the “FNIA” crew previews the defensive prowess of each groups and which QB can deal with the strain greatest.

Rodney Harrison explains why he was “completely impressed” with J.J McCarthy’s show in a comeback win vs. the Bears.

After missing his entire rookie season with a knee injury, J.J. McCarthy made his NFL debut in Week 1, leading the Vikings to an 11-point fourth quarter comeback on the road as Minnesota defeated Chicago, 27-24 (Minnesota trailed 17-6 entering the fourth quarter).

McCarthy, 22, is the youngest starting quarterback in the NFL this season.

McCarthy became the first QB to overcome a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter of a debut start since Steve Young in 1985 (with Tampa Bay).

Brian Flores is entering his third season as the Vikings defensive coordinator. While Minnesota has ranked exactly in the middle of the pack in total defense under Flores (16th in NFL in both 2023 and 2024), the Vikings had a top-five scoring defense last season while putting heavy pressure on the quarterback and finishing tied for the league lead with 33 takeaways.

Flores is known for drawing up aggressive blitz packages, with the Vikings’ 49 sacks last season tied for fourth-most in the NFL. The pass rush was led by Jonathan Greenard (12 sacks) and Andrew Van Ginkel (11.5 sacks), who were one of two pairs of teammates to each post 11+ sacks last season (also Houston’s Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter).

Mike Florio and Chris Simms look ahead to the Week 2 “Sunday Night Football” matchup and explore why they feel confident the Vikings have the upper hand against the Falcons.

Atlanta rushed for just 69 yards, the seventh-lowest rushing total in Week 1, and its 2.5-yards-per-carry average ranked fifth-worst. And consider, too, that nearly a third of their total rushing yards came from their quarterback, Michael Penix. Running backs carried the ball 22 times combined for 48 yards.

Instead of focusing on the run in the traditional sense, Atlanta focused instead on getting running back Bijan Robinson the ball in different ways out of the backfield. He caught six passes for 100 yards, including a touchdown.

Trailing 17-10 in the third quarter, Atlanta came back to take a 20-17 lead with just over two minutes remaining after QB Michael Penix Jr. rushed for a 4-yard touchdown. Tampa Bay then drove down the field and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 59 seconds remaining in regulation.

Atlanta kicker Younghoe Koo missed a game-tying 44-yard field goal attempt with six seconds remaining.

After struggling to get to the quarterback last season, the Falcons put an emphasis on improving the pass rush. Last season, Atlanta’s 31 sacks were the second-fewest in the NFL, while they allowed the highest completion percentage in the league (69.9%).

Atlanta used its first pick in the 2025 NFL draft (15th overall) on Jalon Walker (Georgia), who won the Butkus Award as the best linebacker in college last season. They then traded back into the first round to select edge James Pearce Jr. (Tennessee) with the 26th overall pick. Pearce had 17.5 sacks in 26 games played over his final two seasons at Tennessee.

In free agency, Atlanta signed Leonard Floyd (from San Francisco) to a one-year, $10 million deal. Floyd, who turns 33 on Monday, has posted 8.5+ sacks in each of the last five seasons.

The Falcons had just one sack in their Week 1 loss vs. Tampa Bay. While Tampa Bay QB Baker Mayfield went 17 of 32 with just 167 passing yards, he did throw three touchdown passes.

The Falcons had a top-10 pick in the NFL draft for four straight years from 2021 to 2024, taking an offensive player with all four of those picks. Prior to taking QB Michael Penix Jr. in 2024, the Falcons selected TE Kyle Pitts (2021), WR Drake London (2022) and RB Bijan Robinson (2023). While Pitts has not developed into an elite tight end as was hoped, London and Robinson are the top two playmakers in the Falcons offense.

Robinson had 3,350 scrimmage yards over his first two seasons (third-most in NFL). The only players with more scrimmage yards in that span were Saquon Barkley (3,525) and Derrick Henry (3,495).

London suffered a shoulder injury late in the fourth quarter of Atlanta’s Week 1 loss vs. Tampa Bay and was not on the field for the Falcons’ final plays of the game. There was no update on his status after the game.

The Falcons have not reached the playoffs since the 2017 season, with their current seven-season drought tied for the second-longest active playoff drought in the NFL. That 2017 season is also the last time Atlanta finished above .500 (went 10-6).

Atlanta’s seven-season playoff drought is the franchise’s longest since 1983-1990, when it went eight straight years without reaching the postseason.

Denny Carter and Patrick Daugherty break down a “curler coaster” NFL debut for the Minnesota Vikings on “MNF,” where the first three quarters were rough but the final quarter shows that he can be a fantasy QB streamer.

Since being selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL draft, Justin Jefferson has been arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL. He has posted 1,000+ receiving yards in each of his first five seasons and has been named to four Pro Bowls with two first-team All-Pro selections (2022 and 2024). In the 2022 season, Jefferson was named NFL offensive player of the year.

Jefferson’s 7,432 career receiving yards are the most in NFL history through a player’s first five seasons. He needs 944 receiving yards this season to pass Hall of Famer Randy Moss for the most receiving yards through a player’s first six seasons.

The only season in which Jefferson had fewer than 1,400 receiving yards was in 2023, when he missed seven games with a hamstring injury (but still had 1,074 receiving yards in 10 games played).

Pro Football Focus dives into the numbers around Michael Penix Jr. and J.J. McCarthy ahead of Week 2 “Sunday Night Football” in addition to different impression gamers of be aware in this matchup.

After leading the Vikings to 14 wins last season (second-most in a season in franchise history), head coach Kevin O’Connell signed a multiyear contract extension in January. Just a few weeks after signing his new deal, he was named NFL head coach of the year, becoming just the second Vikings head coach to win the award (after Bud Grant in 1969).

Minnesota has won 13-plus games in two of three seasons under O’Connell. Prior to O’Connell’s tenure, Minnesota had won 13-plus games twice in franchise history (1998 and 2017).

Fantasy Football Pregame gives its best over/under props for Week 2 of the NFL season, including CeeDee Lamb receiving yards, Kyler Murray combined pass and rush yards, and more.

J.J. McCarthy and Michael Penix previously played each other in the final college game of their careers, when McCarthy and the Michigan Wolverines defeated Penix and the Washington Huskies in the national title game in January 2024.

While Penix took over as Atlanta’s starting QB toward the end of last season, McCarthy missed his entire rookie year with a knee injury. This will be McCarthy’s first NFL game in front of a home crowd.

Last season was Atlanta’s first under head coach Raheem Morris, with the Falcons going 8-9 and finishing second in the NFC South but missing the playoffs for the seventh straight year.

Kirk Cousins began the first 14 video games of the season and had the Falcons sitting at 7-7 and nonetheless in the hunt for a playoff berth earlier than they turned to Penix, who was named the starter for the ultimate three video games of the season. After beating the Giants in his first profession begin, Penix and the Falcons then misplaced every of their remaining two video games in extra time (at WAS, vs. CAR) and missed the playoffs.