Falcons' near-comeback a reminder of blown 28-3 SB lead

Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London (5) is congratulated by tight end Kyle Pitts (8) after a touchdown catch in the second half against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Falcons' near-comeback a reminder of blown 28-3 Super Bowl LI lead

By Cory Woodroof | Last updated Sep 19, 2022 2:36 PM ET

In Week 2 in Los Angeles, the Atlanta Falcons reminded their fans of an emotional scar when they nearly came back from a 28-3 deficit.

A comeback from 28-3 would have been a nifty way to push back against the continuing barrage of jokes and memes inspired by the team's Super Bowl LI collapse against New England. The Falcons led 28-3 in that game before losing in overtime, 34-28.

On Sunday, they fell to the Rams, 31-27.

Would be extremely funny for the Falcons to get their 28-3 redemption against the reigning Super Bowl champions but for it to happen in a non-divisional Week 2 game
— Arif Hasan, not a psyop ‍ (@ArifHasanNFL) September 18, 2022

If the Falcons break this 28-3 curse …
— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) September 18, 2022

I am going to become a doomsday prepper if the Falcons overcome a 28-3 lead
— Danny Heifetz (@Danny_Heifetz) September 18, 2022

This website is going to EXPLODE if the Falcons come back from a 28-3 deficit
— Brandon Warne (@Brandon_Warne) September 18, 2022

According to the NGS win probability model, the Falcons had as low as a 0.3% chance of winning with 7:26 left in the third quarter, trailing 28-3.

If the Falcons had won, it would have been the most improbable comeback in the NGS era (since 2016).#ATLvsLAR | #DirtyBirds pic.twitter.com/FIPKBsu3S6
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 18, 2022

After losing in Week 1, the Falcons seem to be making incremental improvement. The stain of 28-3 and Super Bowl LI, however, won't vanish anytime soon.

Cory Woodroof

Cory Woodroof is a longtime journalist that lives in Nashville, Tennessee. He has covered the Atlanta Falcons for the past five years for SB Nation's The Falcoholic and yearly for Athlon's NFL preview edition. He has also covered sports at all levels for the Nashville Post

More must-reads: