 Turner, Falcons roll over Lions The Detroit Lions came into the season opener against the Atlanta Falcons hoping to establish a more balanced attack with rookie Kevin Smith leading the ground game. The Atlanta Falcons apparently were intent on just making a statement. Before the Lions could even get situated on the sidelines, they found themselves down 7-0. On the third offensive play of the game for Atlanta, rookie quarterback Matt Ryan hit Michael Jenkins for a 62-yard touchdown strike. After the Lions failed to answer on their initial possession of the game, they were burned by another big play. This time it was Atlanta running back Michael Turner ripping off a 66-yard scoring run to make the score 14-0. When the Lions went three and out, you almost knew what was coming. Another heavy dose of Turner who culminated a 67-yard drive with a five-yard touchdown run to make the score 21-0. By this point, the Lions had failed to convert a third down, quarterback Jon Kitna was furious and screaming at the coaching staff, and star wide receiver Roy Williams had yet to catch a pass. But the Lions came to life in the second quarter. And it was their passing attack that put them back into the game. Detroit launched a 12 play, 59-yard drive that ended with Smith putting up the first Lions touchdown on the board with a three-yard run. And with under a minute remaining in the half, the Lions stuck again with their passing game. Kitna first hit Calvin Johnson for 38 yards to put the ball on the Atlanta 21-yard line. On the next play, he hit Williams in the end zone with a 21-yard touchdown strike to close the gap to 21-14. By halftime, it was clear which team would be able to run the ball better and which would be better suited airing it out. Turner had amassed 135 yards on the ground in just two quarters of play for the Falcons. The entire Detroit team had a grand total of 28 yards rushing in the half. The Lions tried to get even with the Falcons after the intermission but Kitna was picked off by Lawyer Milloy on their first possession of the second half. The Falcons quickly converted the turnover into points with a 50-yard Jason Elam field goal. The Lions offense sputtered and the Falcons wasted no time finding the end zone again. With the running of Turner and Jerious Norwood coupled with a 46-yard hookup from Ryan to Roddy White, the Falcons worked their way deep into Detroit territory again. Norwood took the ball the final 10 yards on the ground for the score and a 31-14 Atlanta lead. The Lions fought back and with the aid of a pass interference penalty on Keith Brooking, they moved into scoring position. KItna hit Casey Fitzsimmons to cap off the 75-yard drive and put the Lions back within 10 at 31-21. It appeared as though Turner would add to his career day when he found the end zone from seven yards out but a Roddy White holding penalty nullified the score. The Falcons settled for a second Elam field goal, this time from 23 yards out, to up their lead to 34-21. With barely over 10 minutes remaining and down by 13 points, the Lions became basically one dimensional. And the Falcons were well aware of it. On the ensuing drive, Kitna was sacked twice and the Lions were forced to punt the ball back to the Falcons. At that point, the only questions left was whether or not Turner would break the team single game rushing record set by Gerald Riggs. It didn't take long for Turner to answer the question. On the second play of the ensuing possession, Turner rambled for 17 yards to set the new record and the Falcons ran out the clock. In his first game as an Atlanta Falcon, Turner finished the day with 220 yards rushing with two touchdowns. Rookie quarterback Matt Ryan didn't do all that badly himself in his first start as a NFL quarterback. Ryan completed 9-of-13 passes for 161 yards and a touchdown. For the Lions the game had to be a major disappointment. Looking to revive their running game, Smith had only 48 yards on 16 carries. As a team, the Lions had a total of 62 yards rushing. Kitna finished the day with 262 yards passing with a pair of touchdown passes. Detroit wide receiver Calvin Johnson led all receivers with seven receptions for 107 yards. Powere by Turner and Norwood, the Falcons rushed for a total of 318 yards on the Lions.
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