Bijan Robinson has a career-high 78 yards in the first quarter. He also has two touchdowns.
The Falcons have a 14-0 lead.
Saints running back Kendre Miller fumbled at his own 22, when cornerback C.J. Henderson punched it out. Officials did not rule a fumble on the field, forcing the Falcons to challenge. Replay reversed it to a fumble.
The Falcons scored five plays later on Robinson’s 4-yard run.
The Saints were called for two defensive holding penalties in the drive, including Kool-Aid McKinstry’s on Jahan Dotson on fourth-and-4 at the New Orleans 8.
Robinson had seven carries in the first quarter, and Michael Penix completed 3 of 6 passes for 30 yards.
Falcons Clips
Falcons defensive end Za’Darius Smith took a knee to the head with 12:57 left in the first quarter.
He remained on the ground, and after the Falcons’ medical personnel checked him out, they called for a cart. Smith, though, waved it off and walked off the field.
Smith is in the training room being evaluated for a concussion and a neck injury and is questionable to return.
He was blocked to the ground by Saints left tackle Asim Richards, and while lying on the ground, Falcons defensive end Brandon Dorlus’ left knee connected with Smith’s helmet.
Smith leads the team with 2.5 sacks.
Meanwhile, Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts did not start and has played only one snap in two series. The team told ESPN sideline reporter Laura Rutledge that Pitts is healthy.
Charlie Woerner, Nick Muse and Austin Hooper have played more snaps and Pitts so far.
The Saints had barely finished celebrating the 20th anniversary of their emotional post-Katrina return when Bijan Robinson crashed the party.
The Falcons running back took the air out of the “Domecoming” game with a 59-yard touchdown run.
He followed the hole created by left tackle Jake Matthews on Chase Young and went untouched down the left sideline.
Michael Penix completed passes of 12 and 9 yards before Robinson’s jaunt.
The Falcons lead 7-0 only 1 minute, 26 seconds into Monday Night Football.
The Saints will not have tight end Noah Fant for Monday Night Football.
Fant is among the team’s inactives.
He was questionable to play with an abdominal injury.
Rookie Oscar Delp should see more snaps behind starter Juwan Johnson.
The Saints’ other inactives are quarterback Zach Wilson, cornerback Decamerion Richardson (shoulder), edge rusher Anfernee Jennings (knee), defensive lineman Christen Miller (toe), linebacker Kaden Elliss (calf) and edge rusher Carl Granderson (ankle). Wilson is the emergency third quarterback.
The Falcons will have linebacker Divine Deablo and edge rusher Samson Ebukam. Both were questionable with hamstring injuries.
The Falcons’ inactives are quarterback Cooper Rush, quarterback Jack Strand, offensive tackle Ethan Onianwa, defensive lineman Jared Ivey, cornerback Robert Longerbeam and cornerback Malcolm DeWalt IV. Rush will serve as the emergency third quarterback.
The Falcons elevated safety Jammie Robinson to the active roster for Monday Night Football.
It makes Robinson eligible to play against the Saints as long as he is not inactive.
Robinson, 25, entered the league as a Panthers’ fifth-round pick in 2023. He spent time on the Falcons’ practice squad last season and appeared in six games, seeing action on 121 special teams snaps.
He has played 27 games with two starts in his career.
Robinson has 21 career tackles.
The Saints are dealing with several injuries at linebacker, so they brought a pair of healthy ones up from the practice squad for Monday night’s game against the Falcons.
They announced that they have elevated Fadil Diggs and Jackson Sirmon on Monday afternoon. Both players will revert back to the practice squad after the game.
Kaden Elliss, Carl Granderson, and Anfernee Jennings were all ruled out on the team’s final injury report. Pete Werner is listed as questionable to play due to a shoulder injury.
Diggs was a 2025 seventh-round pick and he played in five games during his rookie season. Sirmon played in one game for the Jets last season and joined the Saints in the offseason.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson had to exit Sunday’s win over the Titans with an ankle injury.
Will he be on the field for the Week 5 matchup with the Falcons?
“I don’t know the chances yet,” head coach Jesse Minter said in his Monday press conference. “We’re still gathering a lot of the information, imaging, things like that. Just dealing with a little bit of an ankle. We’ll kind of see where that shakes out.
“Full trust and confidence in him that when it’s ready to roll, that we’ll roll, and go from there.”
The Ravens may still be gathering information. But if Jackson is going to miss time, it sounds like it won’t be much.
“I really don’t think it’s going to be crazy long term,” Minter said. “But, we’ll see what happens.”
Jackson departed Sunday’s game after he suffered the injury on a sack late in the second quarter. Before his exit, he had completed 15-of-20 passes for 222 yards with two touchdowns.
PFT reported on Sunday night that Jackson is believed to be week-to-week. He departed the stadium in a walking boot.
In four games this season, Jackson has completed 70.8 percent of his throws for 967 yards with six touchdowns and one interception. He leads the league in yards per attempt (10.1) and yards per completion (14.2).
Tyler Huntley would be in line to start if Jackson is unavailable.
Additionally, Minter noted that he didn’t have updates on Durham Smythe, Andrew Vorhees, or Marlon Humphrey.
The Ravens’ first injury report of the week will be released on Wednesday.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson exited Sunday’s 24-18 win over the Titans after suffering an ankle injury late in the first half. And while his status has been characterized elsewhere as “day to day,” he is currently believed to be week to week, we’re told.
Jackson left the stadium in a walking boot.
The final prognosis depends on an MRI, which will reveal the extent of the ligament damage.
Ravens coach Jesse Minter downplayed the situation in his postgame press conference.
“Yeah, he was just dealing with a little bit of an ankle, we hope,” Minter told reporters regarding the two-time NFL MVP. “I don’t know enough about it right now. But we’ll have to see where that’s at. But again, thought Snoop [Huntley] came in and ran the operation in a way that allowed us to get the win which is most important. And so we’ll see where that’s at.”
Minter also acknowledged that “there was some talk” about Jackson returning to the game if necessary.
Again, the MRI will be critical. The 3-1 Ravens face the 1-2 Falcons in Atlanta next Sunday night.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson’s day came to an early end due to an ankle injury, but signs continue to show that Jackson avoided any serious damage.
Multiple reporters noted that Jackson’s left ankle was in a boot as he left M&T Bank Stadium after Baltimore’s 24-18 win over the Titans. Head coach Jesse Minter said that there were conversations about Jackson returning in the second half — the Ravens led 24-7 at the break — and Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Jackson is believed to be day-to-day.
Tyler Huntley replaced Jackson in the third quarter and the Ravens didn’t feel the need to take many chances on their way to closing out the home win.
Week 5 will bring a trip to Atlanta for a Sunday night game against the Falcons and Wednesday’s practice report will provide more of an idea of where things stand with Jackson heading into that game.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson did not play in the second half of Sunday’s win over the Titans because of an ankle injury, but head coach Jesse Minter did not make it sound like there’s much fear of a long-term injury after the game.
Jackson left the game with the Ravens up 24-7 at halftime and Minter said at his press conference that there were conversations about having Jackson return. The Ravens only gave up a field goal until a last minute Tennessee touchdown, however, and it seemed the Ravens were willing to ride with Tyler Huntley against an overmatched opponent.
“Little bit of an ankle. Don’t know enough about it right now, we’ll have to see where that’s at. . . . Hopefully it’s in a good spot,” Minter said.
Jackson was limited in practice last Wednesday with a back injury, but seemed fine while going 15-of-20 for 220 yards and two touchdowns in the first half on Sunday. The Ravens will be in Atlanta next Sunday night and the coming days should bring word on if there’s any chance of Jackson missing that game.
