Falcons vs. Lions: 5 Things We Learned in Atlanta's 23-16 Win

The Atlanta Falcons improved to 4-3 with a 23-16 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday. It was a sloppy game filled with injuries and penalties, but Atlanta came through in the end with a win.

Matt Ryan gave fans a scare when he went down at one point after his ankle was stepped on by his own lineman. Luckily for the Falcons, he ran back out of the locker room shortly afterwards and told Chris Redman to take a seat.

The Lions got off to a great start this season, but they have now lost two games in a row. Matthew Stafford didn't have his best game, but the play calling for the Lions didn't help his cause.

Atlanta needed this win. Instead of falling below .500, they now have a positive record and more to build on. Here's a few things we learned from Sunday's game.

Turner's 100+ Yard Games Are Key

Michael Turner has 23 100-yard games as a Falcon. Guess what their record is in those games?

20-3. That's how well Atlanta does when Turner runs the ball well. He carried the ball 27 times for 122 yards in the win against Detroit. In last week's victory against Carolina he had 27 carries for 139 yards. 

Atlanta has to continue to feed The Burner. He keeps the offense balanced and is a key to this team's success. When Turner wins, the Falcons win.

Tony Gonzalez Is One of the Greatest in NFL History

Tony Gonzalez made history in Sunday's game against the Lions. He passed Cris Carter into second place on the NFL's all-time receptions list.

Gonzalez is arguably the greatest tight end to ever play the game. We will surely see him in the Hall of Fame shortly after he is eligible. 

He lead the Falcons with five catches for 62 yards against Detroit. Matt Ryan clearly relies on Gonzalez in the tough spots.

The Falcons Are Undisciplined

The Falcons had no trouble racking up the penalties against the Lions. They finished with 11 penalties for a total of 80 yards. Garrett Reynolds even had back-to-back false start penalties on one drive late in the game. 

Antone Smith was called for a block in the back that negated a 104-yard kick return touchdown by Eric Weems. Weems was already clear to score, but Smith for some reason felt it was necessary to shove someone in the process.

The Falcons have to improve in this aspect of the game. The Lions created their own problems as they finished with 10 penalties, which helped the Falcons in several big situations. Still, Atlanta won't be able to win consistently with this many mistakes.

Atlanta's Special Teams Are Improving

Matt Bryant is clutch. Does he even have any room to improve? The Falcons' can always count on their kicker to cash in.

Eric Weems was in 2010 form today. He returned 4 punts for 62 yards, including one for 37. He also had a 104-yard touchdown on a kickoff that I mentioned earlier. Unfortunately it didn't count, but he is showing signs of improvement with the new rules in play. 

Matt Bosher pinned the Lions inside their own 20-yard line twice. He looked dreadful at the beginning of the season, but the rookie has stepped it up lately. If only he could manage to get more distance on his kickoffs...

The point is, things are getting better.

The Falcons Can Actually Play Defense

Atlanta's defense held Matthew Stafford to 182 yards, and he only completed 15 of 32 passes. Brent Grimes did a good job of containing Megatron when he had him 1-on-1. 

Unfortunately Calvin Johnson did manage to break away for one touchdown. Thomas DeCoud was completely out of position, and some poor tackling by the Falcons' safeties led to Johnson's score. Other than that play, I was impressed with most of the game.

The Lions didn't have their explosive running back, as Jahvid Best sat out with a concussion. They tried to get in a rhythm with the ground game, but alternating Keiland Williams and Maurice Morris never seemed to get to the job done.

The Falcons have a bye week coming up, so let's hope they continue to step it up when they return to action in Week 9 against Indianapolis.