Falcons Not as Bad as Saints, 17-15

Hey, somebody had to win.

In a matchup between two of the NFL’s worst teams, Atlanta managed to avoid its weekly loss Sunday, mainly because the New Orleans Saints were in town. But the Falcons’ 17-15 victory was hardly a masterpiece.

New Orleans, losing its fourth in a row, managed one touchdown against a team that gave up 59 points to the St. Louis Rams last week. Atlanta had trouble with a simple task like running out the clock, drawing a silly penalty that that gave the Saints an unnecessary possession at the end of the game.

“I’m pleased and disappointed,” embattled Falcon Coach June Jones said. “We gave them a chance at the end.”

Atlanta’s victory left both teams at 2-9 and still in contention for the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft.

After being thoroughly embarrassed in the 59-16 loss to the Rams, the Atlanta defense came up with two interceptions and a fumble recovery on New Orleans’ first three possessions.

The interceptions were especially significant since the Falcons were on pace to set an NFL record for fewest in a 16-game season, picking off only one pass in their first 10 games and none since Week 2.

“It has been a source of embarrassment for the secondary to have only one interception on the season,” said Brad Edwards, whose interception led to a field goal. “You are not going to win games unless you get the turnovers. It was nice to come out early and get some interceptions.”

Cornelius Bennett had the other interception, and New Orleans also lost a fumble when Ray Zellars bobbled a handoff from quarterback Jim Everett.

After Ron George recovered the fumble at the Saint 42, Bobby Hebert completed six consecutive passes, the final one to Eric Metcalf for an eight-yard touchdown.

Metcalf, who has been slowed because of injuries, scored his first touchdown of the year after a brilliant 1995 season in which he reached the end zone 10 times.

Hebert also threw a five-yard scoring pass to Terance Mathis with 16 seconds remaining in the first half to give the Falcons a 17-3 lead at the break. Hebert completed 26 of 39 passes for 229 yards against his former team.