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Bucs Get Help From Dunn, Atlanta

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By IRA KAUFMAN, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 12, 2007

Updated: 11/12/2007 12:11 am

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - For the suddenly revived Atlanta Falcons, Sunday's game had a different feel right from the start.

With Warrick Dunn still helping the Bucs in their playoff chase, six years after his departure from Tampa, the Falcons grabbed a rare early lead and then engineered a tiebreaking touchdown drive in the final minute to hand Carolina a crippling 20-13 setback.

In tuning up for a home matchup against the Bucs, Atlanta appeared sloppy at times but played hard throughout in improving to 3-6 and denying the favored Panthers (4-5) an opportunity to tie idle Tampa Bay atop the tightly bunched NFC South.

Dunn's 30-yard scoring run off a third-down draw play put the Falcons ahead 7-0 midway through the first quarter, marking Atlanta's first opening-possession touchdown in 45 games.

"I saw an open space and I just kept running," said Dunn, who carried 26 times for 89 yards and added a 35-yard gain on a screen pass from Joey Harrington to set up a third-quarter field goal. "Our defense played great all day and we felt as an offense we needed to do our part. Things are finally starting to come together for this team."

The Falcons went ahead 13-10 on Morten Andersen's 47-yard field goal early in the final quarter, matching the age of the NFL's all-time leading scorer.

Two possessions later, amid thousands of empty seats at Bank of America Stadium, the Panthers drove 66 yards behind Vinny Testaverde, who turns 44 on Tuesday.

Testaverde hit tight end Jeff King for 24 yards, Steve Smith for 20 and Drew Carter for 14 before John Kasay's 31-yard field goal forged a 13-13 tie with 3:35 left.

Each team failed to generate a first down before a 23-yard punt return by Adam Jennings gave the Falcons possession at the Carolina 45 with 53 seconds remaining.

Just as Atlanta moved into Andersen's field goal range, Harrington found tight end Alge Crumpler open down the seam against a full blitz for the winning 30-yard connection.

"They were blitzing everybody on that play," Bobby Petrino said after his first road win as an NFL head coach. "I think the thing I'm most happy about is winning the game in the fourth quarter. We understand all of these games are going to be close - we found a way today."

The Falcons had plenty of help from the pedestrian Panthers, who fell to 0-4 in Charlotte and haven't rewarded their dwindling fan base with a home victory in almost a full calendar year.

Testaverde, who completed 13 of 28 passes for 153 yards, was an uncertain starter because of a strained Achilles' tendon. Carolina, which heads to Lambeau Field next week, converted only 3-for-16 on third down and punted nine times in 13 possessions.

"Offensively, we couldn't put points on the board," said Testaverde, signed a month ago after injuries to Jake Delhomme (elbow) and David Carr (concussion). "We need to do some better things in order to have a chance to beat someone like Green Bay. It's a little bizarre that we can't win at home."

The Falcons, 2-2 at the Georgia Dome, now appear energized after beating the 49ers and Panthers in consecutive weeks.

"We're 3-6, but we're not too far out in our division and we've got Tampa coming to our house next week," said defensive end John Abraham, who was in Testaverde's face most of the afternoon, often coming in clean off the right edge. "That's a big one for us. We feel like we've been in almost every game."

The Bucs face the Falcons twice within the next month and they will enter Sunday's matchup alone at the top of the NFC South, thanks to a stunning result at the Superdome, where previously winless St. Louis shocked New Orleans.

"We're 3-6 right now and we're one game out of first place in our division," said Andersen, a 25-year veteran who obviously wasn't a math major at Michigan State. "That's a small positive, but we've dug ourselves a big hole here and we're trying to get out by scratching and clawing."

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