Another primetime game for the Atlanta Falcons (2-2) means another show from running back Bijan Robinson. He erupted for over 140 yards rushing as Atlanta earned a wire-to-wire 45-24 victory over the New Orleans Saints (1-3) on “Monday Night Football.” 

The Falcons have now scored 35-plus points in consecutive primetime games for the first time since the 2016 season, when they won the NFC and lost in overtime of the Super Bowl to the New England Patriots. Their 80 points scored across their last two games, between Monday and the 35-14 Week 3 win at the Green Bay Packers, are also their most in a two-game span since 2016. Monday was also the first time the Falcons have run for 200-plus yards (205 in Week 4 vs. the Saints) as a team in consecutive games since 2010. 

Robinson brought his A-game from the start, taking his first carry of the night 59 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown that put the Falcons up 7-0. All it took was one cut outside, and he was gone. That score is his fifth from 50-plus yards, the second-most in the league since he entered the NFL in 2023. Robinson added a second touchdown from 4 yards out with 48 seconds left in the first quarter to run the Falcons’ lead up to 14-0. He finished the first half with 103 yards rushing and those two touchdowns on 12 carries, and by the time the clock hit zero Monday night, he was up to 145 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns on 19 carries. After his 194-yard, two-touchdown performance at the Packers in Week 3, Robinson is now the only player in Falcons history with 300-plus yards rushing and 4-plus rushing touchdowns in a two-game span, per CBS Sports Research. 

New Orleans clapped back at the start of the second quarter after a drive began at their own 46 after an unnecessary roughness penalty on Atlanta, and they fully capitalized on the short field. Quarterback Tyler Shough hit a wide-open Chris Olave on a play-action pass for 44 yards to kick start the drive, and then they were in the end zone via an Alvin Kamara touchdown run from three yards out two plays later. The touchdown was Kamara’s first since Week 1 of the 2025 season against the Arizona Cardinals. That score cut the Falcons’ lead to 14-7 with 14:57 left in the first half.  Shough finished with 286 yards and a touchdown on 30 of 48 passing.

From that point, Atlanta outscored New Orleans 31-17 the rest of the way with No. 2 running back Brian Robinson Jr. finding the end zone a career-high three times, kicker Nick Folk hitting a 29-yard field goal, and quarterback Michael Penix Jr. throwing a wide-open, 31-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jahan Dotson off play action. Atlanta, between both Robinsons, combined for a franchise-record five rushing touchdowns Monday night. Robinson and Robinson Jr. combined for 207 yards rushing and those five rushing touchdowns on 33 carries. Kamara scored a second rushing touchdown from five yards out, and wide receiver Devaughn Vele hauled in a three-yard touchdown pass with 1:13 left to play. 

With Penix and the threat of the passing game back in the lineup, Atlanta is a force to be reckoned with. As for the Saints, they’re now left to soul-search after getting manhandled at the line of scrimmage at the Superdome. 

Atlanta’s Bijan Robinson-led offense is a freight train 

Robinson has always been a superstar-caliber talent. With coach Kevin Stefanski having a quarterback whose arm defenses have to show any semblance of respect toward in Penix Jr., the Falcons’ run game is humming. Atlanta looked dead in the water after being outscored 54-16 in a 0-2 start, with backup Cooper Rush filling in as the starting quarterback, with Penix Jr. working his way back from the torn ACL he suffered last season. With Penix Jr., who threw for 223 yards and 1 touchdown on 15 of 20 passing, back in the lineup, the 2026 Falcons have had the sixth-largest scoring increase from the first two weeks of a season (16 points) to the second two weeks of a season (80 Points), per CBS Sports Research.

Buffalo All-Americans (1921)

+76 (17 to 93)

Chicago Rockets (1946)

+73 (6 to 79)

Houston Texans (2017)

+70 (20 to 90)

Oakland Raiders (1961)

+ 68 (0 to 68)

Pittsburgh Steelers (1993)

+66 (14 to 79)

Atlanta Falcons (2026)

+64 (16 to 80)

The longer Penix Jr. shakes off the rust from his torn ACL, the more dangerous Atlanta’s offense will become with the threat of the play-action pass growing by the week. Atlanta scored 80 points in his first two starts of 2026, making him just the fourth quarterback this decade with 80-plus team points in his first two starts of a season, per CBS Sports Research. 

Saints need Tyler Shough and Chris Olave to be perfect to overcome lack of run game, defense

The one positive New Orleans can take from their 1-3 start to 2026 is the connection between Shough and Olave. After Olave racked up another 116 yards on 8 catches, he now ranks second in the NFL with 491 receiving yards. Shough and Olave need to spend the next week watching Dallas Cowboys film to learn how quarterback Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb, who leads the NFL with 498 yards receiving, carry their leaky defense.

What’s Next

The Falcons will be on primetime once again in Week 5, hosting Lamar Jackson and his 3-1 Baltimore Ravens on “Sunday Night Football.” The Saints will host the 4-0, NFC North-leading Minnesota Vikings in Week 5.