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Falcons beat Seahawks 27-23 for first win of 2022

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Mike Florio and Chris Simms offer up their best bets of Week 3 in the NFL, from Jimmy Garoppolo and the Niners taking on a struggling Broncos team to Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs against the 0-2 Colts.

The Falcons have their first win of the 2022 season.

Grady Jarrett came up with a sack of Geno Smith on the first snap after the two minute warning to set up a long fourth down and Smith’s desperate heave on that play was picked off by safety Richie Grant. That put the finishing touches on a 27-23 road win for the Falcons.

The big plays on the defense came after Cordarrelle Patterson and Marcus Mariota led the Falcons to points on five of their first seven possessions. Patterson had 17 carries for 141 yards and a touchdown while Mariota threw for one score and ran for another.

Mariota’s touchdown pass went to rookie wideout Drake London late in the third quarter and put the Falcons in front for the first time since the first quarter. It looked like they were driving for insurance points in the fourth, but a botched handoff on a read option led to a fumble that was recovered by Seahawks linebacker Uchenna Nwosu. The Seahawks put together an impressive drive, but a holding penalty wiped out a play that would have left them with a first down on Atlanta’s 10-yard-line and Seattle’s drive sputtered.

The late failure marred an otherwise strong day for the Seahawks offense. They also scored on five of their first seven possessions and Smith went 32-of-44 for 325 yards and two touchdowns after Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said the team was planning to put more on the veteran’s plate this week.

Seattle also got 106 yards on 20 carries by Rashaad Penny, DeeJay Dallas, and Ken Walker, but they had three red zone drives end with field goals and they needed more touchdowns.

The Seahawks will be in Detroit next weekend as they bid for their second win of the year. The Falcons will be home to meet the 2-1 Browns.