The Atlanta Falcons and Minnesota Vikings squared off under the prime-time lights at U.S. Bank Stadium, where 2024 first-round draft picks Michael Penix Jr. and J.J. McCarthy went head to head in an unofficial rematch of their college football national championship. And this time, the results were much different for the young men.
Two years after McCarthy hoisted the trophy for Michigan, Penix had the last laugh on Sunday with the Falcons. Atlanta showed off its rebuilt pass rush, with 2025 first-round rookies Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. each logging a sack of McCarthy, who was downed a total of six times. And while Minnesota mostly stood firm in the red zone under the direction of Brian Flores, forcing the Falcons to settle for field goals on five different scoring drives, the tandem of Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier kept the ball in Atlanta's hands en route to a decisive 22-6 victory.
Penix only threw for 135 yards in victory, but that's partly because Robinson was a one-man wrecking crew, clearing 160 total yards one week after logging 100 as a receiver against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Meanwhile Raheem Morris' defense also nabbed two interceptions against McCarthy, giving the Falcons four total forced turnovers.
Here are some big-picture takeaways from Sunday's game:
Play of the game
The pass rush may have been the headliner of the Falcons defense, but rookie defensive back Billy Bowman Jr. had maybe the most impressive physical feat, diving in to wrestle the ball from Jalen Nailor for the game's first pick:
J.J. McCarthy has fallen all the way back to Earth
Look, this is practically the kid's rookie season. So there were always going to be bumps along the way. But Vikings fans were rightfully pumped by the way the Michigan product finished Week 1, with dual-threat authority. It was enough for many of those same fans to overlook how uneven McCarthy was to start that game against the Chicago Bears. Except Sunday night's home opener was even worse. Granted, the protection wasn't firm out of the gate, with two regulars missing by the end. But McCarthy himself was more loose with the ball, fumbling three times and losing one, while tossing two picks. You just cannot expect to be competitive with that kind of stuff.
The Vikings need to get healthy in the front seven
Bijan Robinson was bottled up as a runner in Week 1. So why on Earth did he cruise to well over 100 yards as the Falcons' lead ball carrier at U.S. Bank Stadium? You can start by looking at the medical report in Minnesota. With Blake Cashman sidelined on injured reserve and Andrew Van Ginkel also banged up, the Vikings badly missed two of their most physical middlemen. If you want to push it all the way back to the secondary, where "Hitman" Harrison Smith remained out for personal reasons, that's fine, too. The point is, Brian Flores' defense needs to be at full health to function at its best, especially when the offense can't even bother to get into the end zone.
The Falcons have the makings of an NFC South push
We say "makings" because, even though a 22-6 road victory is to be celebrated, there are things to be cleaned up, like Raheem Morris' oversight and the offense's red zone strategy. Still, the South should be in play, as evidenced by Michael Penix Jr. and Co. taking the Buccaneers to the wire in Week 1. Penix was sharp when he needed to be Sunday, and he's got legitimate and youthful support in Robinson, Tyler Allgeier, Drake London and Kyle Pitts. Throw in the recharged edge rushing rotation and ball-hawking safety group, and you can talk yourself into the Falcons finally, after all these years, actually putting themselves into the playoff conversation.
