Falcons denied sweep of Saints because of 3 missed FGs and failures on pass defense
Associated PressATLANTA — It should be no surprise the Atlanta Falcons won’t achieve perfection in their NFC South schedule. Atlanta was 4-0 against division opponents before failures on pass defense and three missed field goals helped to prevent a sweep of the season series against the Saints. That play served as a reminder the Atlanta defense was held without a sack one week after the pass rush showed improvement with three sacks in a 27-21 home win over Dallas. Atlanta couldn’t overcome two first-half touchdown catches by Saints wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who gained 109 yards on only three receptions. New Orleans was missing injured wide receivers Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed and still the defense allowed Derek Carr to complete 16 of 25 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns.