The Sports Xchange

ATLANTA — After the Philadelphia Eagles erased a big halftime deficit to take the lead, the Atlanta Falcons had a chance to fold midway through the fourth quarter.

Instead, the Falcons threw the ball to star receiver Julio Jones and relied on the leg of trusty veteran kicker Matt Bryant.

Jones caught two touchdown passes, and Bryant kicked four field goals to help the Falcons survive a furious Philadelphia rally in the second half and give new Atlanta coach Dan Quinn his first win, 26-24 on Monday at the Georgia Dome.

“What an awesome finish,” Quinn said. “We thought it would come down to the finish, just like it did.”

Jones made nine receptions for 141 yards, including a 44-yard catch that set up Bryant’s go-ahead, 47-yard field goal with 6:47 to play.

The Eagles had two more chances, but kicker Cody Parkey missed from 44 yards out, and quarterback Sam Bradford threw his second interception of the night on Philadelphia’s final drive. Atlanta safety Ricardo Allen corralled a tipped ball for the game-sealing interception.

Trailing 20-3, the Eagles grabbed the momentum early in the third quarter on safety Walter Thurmond’s interception of Ryan. Two plays later, running back DeMarco Murray scored his first touchdown as an Eagle on an 8-yard sweep.

Bradford shook off an uneven first half and led scoring drives of 95 and 80 yards in the second half. The Eagles took the lead, 24-23, on a 1-yard touchdown run by running back Ryan Mathews.

“I think the difference between the first half and the second half is that we were much more efficient on first down in the second half,” Bradford said. “We got things going, and once we got things rolling, we kept it that way.”

What we learned about the Falcons:

1. A major question mark entering the season, the Falcons’ offensive line shined against the Eagles. The unit did not allow a sack, and it led the way for rookie running back Tevin Coleman’s 80-yard debut.

2. The Falcons’ kicking game is a strength. Kicker Matt Bryant made all four of his field-goal attempts, including the go-ahead 44-yarder midway through the fourth quarter, and Matt Bosher averaged 57.8 yards on four punts, three of which ended up inside the 20-yard line.

3. The Falcons are going to go as far as Julio Jones can take them. The All-Pro is one of the best receivers in the game and is capable of taking over. However, he has dealt with injury issues throughout his career. If he can stay healthy, Atlanta can be in the hunt in wide-open NFC South.

Etc.

–WR/KR Devin Hester was inactive for the opener against the Eagles with a toe injury. Hester, the most prolific punt return in NFL history, missed practice time last week. Eric Weems took over return duties for Hester, and he averaged 19.7 yards on three attempts.

–WR Julio Jones caught nine passes for 141 yards and two touchdowns. His 44-yard reception in the fourth quarter was his only catch of the second half, but it set up K Matt Bryant’s go-ahead 47-yard field goal that turned out to be the difference. Jones was in and out of the lineup in the second half, but coach Dan Quinn didn’t indicate that his star receiver was ailing. “We were just trying to feature a lot of guys,” Quinn said.

–RB Tevin Coleman gained 80 yards on 20 carries in his NFL debut. An elusive rookie out of Indiana, Coleman split carries with Devonta Freeman but was the more effective back.