Falcons Rout Packers 35-14 as Bijan Robinson and Drake London Explode

The Atlanta Falcons erased an early deficit and routed the Green Bay Packers 35-14 at Lambeau Field on Thursday night, with Bijan Robinson rushing for 194 yards and two touchdowns and Drake London catching nine passes for a career-high 194 yards, Reuters and CBS Sports reported.

Michael Penix Jr. returned from a torn ACL suffered last November and completed 18 of 25 passes for 256 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Atlanta (1-2) scored 27 unanswered points after trailing 7-0, finishing with 242 rushing yards to Green Bay’s 17, both outlets said.

Robinson carried 29 times, including runs of 55 and 31 yards, and finished a yard short of his career high. London hauled in half of Penix’s completions. CBS Sports noted the pair became the first teammates with at least 190 yards from scrimmage each in a road game since Lawrence McCutcheon and Ron Jessie for the Rams at Miami in 1976.

Green Bay (1-2) lost a home opener for the first time since 2012, snapping a 13-game home-opener win streak that had tied the Miami Dolphins’ NFL record from 1976 to 1988, Reuters reported. Jordan Love went 28 of 53 for 312 yards with two touchdowns and one interception, but the Packers managed just 17 yards on nine carries.

Atlanta had not run a single play inside an opponent’s 20-yard line through the first two weeks with Cooper Rush at quarterback — the first team since the 2008 Rams to go that long without a red-zone snap, CBS Sports said. That drought ended quickly once Penix directed drives that produced Nick Folk field goals, an Austin Hooper touchdown catch, Brian Robinson Jr.’s short scoring run, and Bijan Robinson’s late two-point conversion after a 2-yard score.

For readers following the NFL on Sports, Thursday’s result flips early-season narratives for both clubs. Atlanta’s offense finally reached the red zone and converted; Green Bay’s ground game and early-season penalty problems resurfaced under a chorus of Lambeau boos, both reports said.

A roughing-the-passer call on Brenton Cox Jr. kept an Atlanta drive alive late in the first quarter; Robinson’s 55-yard carry on the next snap set up his tying 3-yard touchdown. Zach Harrison later blocked Trey Smack’s 47-yard field-goal try that would have knotted the game at 10, and Penix answered with the Hooper score before halftime.

Green Bay’s first second-half drive died on fourth-and-1 at the Atlanta 8 when Love could not connect with Christian Watson. Atlanta then marched 92 yards, and Penix later hit London for 68 yards to set up Folk’s 31-yard kick that made it 27-7. Love’s 15-yard touchdown to Matthew Golden cut the deficit to 27-14 before Bijan Robinson closed it out.

Verified facts as of Thursday night’s reports: Falcons 35, Packers 14; Bijan Robinson 194 rush yards and two TDs; Drake London nine catches for 194 yards; Penix 18-of-25 for 256 yards in ACL return; Packers 17 rush yards; Atlanta first home-opener loss for Green Bay since 2012. How both teams handle the short week ahead — Atlanta at New Orleans on Oct. 5, Green Bay at Tampa Bay on Oct. 4 — will show whether Thursday was a one-night explosion or a season-turning reset.