The Atlanta Falcons were always going to have a tough time knocking off the Kansas City Chiefs. Add in two injured offensive linemen and a defense that couldn’t get pressure on Patrick Mahomes and what looked rough soon became insurmountable.

To their eternal credit, the Falcons never stopped struggling and trying to make a game of it, and they were remarkably close to succeeding at times. This is a tougher, more capable Falcons team than it has been in some time, one capable of suffering losses and then continuing to not just fight but actually land punches. Zac Robinson was able to, after time and a little bit of a painful stretch, find his way to a more successful game plan despite being down two key offensive linemen. Jimmy Lake and Raheem Morris managed to get the defense clamping down in key stretches, especially late in the game.

It was, unfortunately, not quite enough. The Falcons managed to drive down the field with under two minutes to go, getting close enough to give themselves a shot, but third and fourth down short yardage carries couldn’t get the yardage and effectively ended the game. Atlanta’s decision earlier to not kick a field goal and go for the end zone on fourth down—a perfectly logical choice given the situation and opponent—will probably be scrutinized this week, given that a field goal on that final drive plus a field goal earlier would’ve potentially won the game. But you go for the knockout punch against a great team every time, and the Falcons wanted to land it. Their best late game blow just wasn’t enough to overcome Kansas City.

A Look Back: Drive-by-Drive Recap of the Close Encounter

Here’s the full drive-by-drive recap, if you’re interested in re-living the game or missed it live.

The Falcons got the ball first, and the opening kickoff was a touchback. A quick pass from a rolling Kirk Cousins to Darnell Mooney allowed the speedy receiver to pick up almost ten yards. On second down, Cousins got time in the pocket and was able to find Mooney downfield for 24 yards, with a slipping defender making it easier for the receiver to reel in his second straight grab. Bijan Robinson then lost a yard on first down before Cousins, again with plenty of time, found Ray-Ray McCloud over the middle for a first down. Robinson then picked up five yards on the ground. A screen to McCloud seemed dead on arrival but resulted in a couple of yards because he fought to earn them. A wide open Drake London then caught the touchdown from Cousins to cap off an impressively early opening drive. 7-0 Falcons.

A weak return and a holding call backed Kansas City up deep. Patrick Mahomes ran a bit and fired a low pass that Rashee Rice still almost came up with, but thankfully it fell to the turf. The second down quick pass to Xavier Worthy saw him use his speed and moves to pick up a first down, and then Worthy got it again for about six yards. Carson Steele then picked up a first down, and then Dee Alford dropped Travis Kelce for a one yard gain. A strike to Rice then got 17 yards working (where else?) over the middle. An incomplete pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster followed on first down, and then Mahomes escaped pressure to pick up nine yards on the ground. A Steele carry up the middle was spotted just shy of the first down, and the Chiefs went for it and a Rice carry that appeared to come up just short was not overturned after the Falcons challenged the first down ruling. Mahomes then took a shot to the end zone that Mike Hughes played brilliantly to break up, and then a quick pass went for only a couple of yards. A quick, low pass to Rice resulted in another first down. The Falcons then got hit with a too many men on the field penalty, and then Samaje Perine took it four yards. Steele then took it for another first down. A quick pass to Steele got just two yards, and an end zone shot from Mahomes was picked off by Justin Simmons again, adding to the safety’s league-leading Mahomes interception total. Falcons ball.

Robinson took it four yards on first down with a little shimmy to get free, and then he bullied his way forward for a first down. Bijan then got crushed in the backfield on the next carry, and then a quick pass to Mooney went for a couple of yards. On third down, Cousins had to escape heavy pressure and deliver one in the direction of Kyle Pitts, who wasn’t able to reel it in. and a call on Jake Matthews did nothing to rescue Atlanta. Punt, and it was a Pinion boot and 11 yard return to set the Chiefs up just past the 20.

Six yards for the Chiefs and then a quick pickup for another three, setting up a 3rd and 1. Unfortunately, Mahomes then found Kelce for a first down. Steele picked up maybe three yards on first down, and then a quick pass to Rice resulted in a first down. Perine then picked up nine yards on the ground. Perine then easily got a first down and more, but a two yard gain and a near-sack on Mahomes set up a third and long. Somehow, Mahomes got loose and threw a first down pass to Justin Watson. Perine was hit quickly by Ta’Quon Graham on the next play, but offsetting penalties created a first down. Mahomes then missed Steele, and then Rice took a short pass for about seven yards. The next play was a touchdown pass to Rice, who got loose and into the end zone to tie it up, and a shorter than usual extra point because they also called roughing the passer on Lorenzo Carter. 7-7.

Touchback. A first down throw to Ray-Ray McCloud was knocked out of his hands for an incompletion. Tyler Allgeier then took it for four yards, and then Cousins took a deep shot to London that went a little too far for him to get. A roughing the passer call on Chris Jones kept the drive alive, but Kaleb McGary got hurt on the play. Bijan picked up a couple of yards. Cousins then fired one deep and got it to Kyle Pitts, who rumbled after the catch to the one yard line for a 50 yard gain, and a defensive holding call was declined. Bijan then punched it in from a yard out. 14-7, Falcons.

Steele picked up a first down up the middle, and then another before Mahomes hit a tight end for a 13 yard gain. A.J. Terrell then got Rice after about two yards, and then another pass to Rice got about seven. An ill-advised carry up the middle to Perine then lost a yard, setting up a 4th and 2. Harrison Butker came on and hit the long field goal try. 14-10, Falcons.

A couple of yards on first down for Robinson, and then Cousins got drilled from behind while throwing it into the turf, and the play was ruled a fumble (it looked like an incomplete) that Robinson appeared to deliberately kick out of bounds. That may have prevented the Chiefs from recovering it, and it resulted in a lot of down and a 10 yard penalty. Trouble with the snap on the next play was partially negated by a heads-up Bijan carry, but the drive still ended. Punt.

A quick five yard pass to Perine and then an incomplete stopped the clock at 1:18 for the Chiefs, and then Mahomes threw one to Rice that he couldn’t bring in and was nearly picked by Jessie Bates. Punt, with a solid return from Avery Williams.

A false start on Storm Norton backed Atlanta up. A quick pass to Drake London got eight yards, and then Cousins hung in tough to throw it up while being hit and tossed a duck that was intercepted. Turnover.

A quick pass to Perine went for eight yards. Pressure got home to Mahomes enough to make him scramble and throw it up, where it fell harmlessly to the turf out of the back of the end zone. Mahomes then threw it out of bounds on the next play. That was a nice stop by Atlanta, but Butker drilled the field goal. 14-13 Falcons.

The Falcons kneeled it out.

The Chiefs Regain the Lead and Hold On

The Chiefs had the ball back, and it was a quick strike to Travis Kelce for eight yards to start things off. Rice then caught a short pass and spun out of contact for about a 15 yard pickup. Another pass to Rice picked up another first down, and then Mahomes found Kelce for another big chunk of yardage. A productive Steele carry got another first, setting up a goal line series for Kansas City, and the Falcons did stop Steele quickly on first down. Steele then lost about a yard thanks to David Onyemata. Matthew Judon then got pressure and nearly took Mahomes down, forcing an incompletion out of the back of the end zone. But then Judon was hurt on the play, and Butker drilled the field goal try. 16-14, Chiefs.

A solid return by Williams was followed up by a quick pass to Darnell Mooney from Kirk Cousins, which went for five yards. Robinson then picked up three yards on the ground, and on third down, Cousins tried to escape pressure and didn’t get very far. Punt.

A five yard gain and then a four yard pass to Rashee Rice got the Chiefs on the cusp of a first down, and then Steele took it for a first down. Then Mahomes hung in under pressure to get Rice working against Mike Hughes for a big gain downfield. Xavier Worthy then caught a quick pass and picked up a couple of yards. Mahomes then saw nobody open and ran for about 15 yards. Steele then picked up seven yards, and then the Chiefs followed a first with a good gain and an instant tackle of Rice on a short pass by Terrell, with Rice looking slow to get up. Unfortunately, that was followed by a touchdown pass from Mahomes to JuJu Smith-Schuster, but Butker missed the extra point. Chiefs 22, Falcons 14.

On first down, Cousins was able to get away and connect with Mooney for a first down, the first one the Falcons had managed in a while. Unfortunately, on the next play, Robinson went up the middle and was hit almost immediately for a two yard loss. A quick screen pass to Robinson was far more successful, though, resulting in a 13 yard gain and a first down.

A three yard Tyler Allgeier pickup gave way to Cousins throwing a ball into the dirt, perhaps because he and London weren’t on the same page on where the receiver was going to be. Cousins then got Mooney again for a first down, while Robinson ran for three yards. Then Cousins had to dirt it with pressure in his face more or less immediately, and then Cousins once again was under pressure and threw it away on third down. Koo was able to drill the 54 yarder, though, tying a career long. Chiefs 22, Falcons 17.

Steele picked up six yards and then left the game looking a little injured, and Mahomes hit Perine for maybe two yards. Then he tried to hit Kelce over the middle, and Bates was able to hit him and knock it loose. Punt.

A Gutsy Drive Falls Short

Unfortunately, the return was a nightmare for Atlanta, as Avery Williams tried to make a move and appeared to fumble...but his arm was down and the Falcons retained possession deep in their own territory. On the next play, Cousins was hit as he threw for an incompletion, but an illegal hands to the face penalty on Storm Norton made that worse. Tyler Allgeier then took it for about 10 yards and followed it up with another 10 yard carry. Allgeier then picked up maybe three yards. A quick pass to Kyle Pitts got another first down. Robinson then came in and rolled for three yards, and then Cousins was able to get the ball out before pressure got home to London, who made his way to a first down. Nick Bolton left the game for the Chiefs on the next play. Then the Falcons ran it with Ray-Ray McCloud, who got good blocking and took it about 20 yards down the sideline, with a missed (and seemingly obvious) facemask the only thing between him and paydirt. A quick pass out to Robinson then went nowhere, and then another Robinson touch picked up two yards. The Falcons tried to get the Chiefs to jump and they did on the next play, creating a neutral zone infraction that gave the Falcons a more manageable third down. A handoff to Robinson got maybe a yard, setting up a 4th and 2. Cousins then hit London over the middle for a swift first down. A pitch to Bijan went for a couple of yards, and then Allgeier picked up another couple of yards. Cousins then tried to slip one in to tight coverage to Pitts, but it was incomplete and there was no call despite heavy contact on Pitts. On fourth down, Cousins tried again for the end zone to London, but it was low and fell incomplete. Turnover on downs.

A quick, unproductive run by Steele was followed by a Mahomes scramble that went for about seven yards. Then Mahomes dirted it on third down and the Chiefs had to punt.

On first down, Cousins tried for Mooney on the sideline and couldn’t get it after the pass was tipped, but a penalty on the other side of the field made sure the Falcons got 10 yards and a fresh set of downs. Cousins then ripped it to London for a first down and about 12 yards, and then appeared to throw it away on a play where he noticed a pass interference call on Trent McDuffie that gave Atlanta 16 yards. On the next play, Cousins missed London a bit, resulting in an incompletion. A quick pass to Mooney went nowhere, but a horse collar on the Chiefs gave Atlanta another first down. Another quick pass out to Mooney went nowhere again, losing two yards. Then Cousins found London, who fought through contact and was able to get close to a first down. An Allgeier carry came up just short, setting up a 4th and inches for Atlanta. That fourth down carry to Robinson was dropped for a loss, ending the game, with a superlative individual effort by Nick Bolton ensuring Robinson didn’t convert.

The Chiefs then kneeled it out to win the game.

A Loss with Lessons Learned

The Falcons took the Chiefs nearly to the end despite a couple of major losses along their offensive line, making for a tough loss that comes with a dose of optimism. The Falcons have, however, beaten the Eagles on the road and come awfully close to toppling the defending Super Bowl champions in primetime in back-to-back weeks. Despite the 1-2 record, it’s impossible not to feel like this Falcons team is finally heading in a better direction, and with an NFC South run coming up and then a softer schedule following that, there’s plenty of hope their improved play and learnings from these first three games can add up to something special. I wish they had won, but for once, I’m looking forward instead of dwelling.