CHARLOTTE, N.C. — — The Atlanta Falcons are proving they can win in more ways than one, especially against a division foe.

Bijan Robinson ran for 95 yards and two touchdowns, Tyler Allgeier added 105 yards rushing and a game-clinching score and the Falcons defeated the Carolina Panthers 38-20 on Sunday for their third victory over an NFC South opponent in three weeks.

The win comes a week after Kirk Cousins ​​threw 58 passes for a franchise-record 509 yards in a 36-30 overtime victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Cousins ​​had a lighter day this week, completing 19 of 30 passes for 225 yards with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Drake London.

Robinson said the way the Falcons are playing now, opposing defenses have to pick their poison when it comes to stopping them.

“That’s where you want to go with the offense, where those guys don’t know whether to stop the run or the pass,” Robinson said. “And then you can do both, it’s just very difficult for a defense because then they say, ‘Okay, what do we do?'”

The Falcons were the latest team to feast on an injury-riddled Panthers defense, which put up a league-high 203 points in six games, the ninth-most in the Super Bowl era and the most since the 2020 Dallas Cowboys.

Carolina has allowed 34 or more points in four games this season.

Falcons coach Raheem Morris said his team’s ability to rush for 198 yards and average 5.2 yards per carry was largely based on taking what the Panthers gave them.

“Last week we threw 58 times and threw for 509 yards, and this week we were able to run for (198) and that’s the sign of a good football team when you have to find ways to beat them,” Morris said. “We’ll take what you give us and go there and deal.”

Carolina’s Andy Dalton finished 26 of 38 for 221 yards with two touchdown passes and two interceptions in the fourth quarter for the Panthers (1-5), who have lost three in a row.

The Panthers trailed 28-20 early in the fourth quarter and moved the ball down the floor effectively, with Chuba Hubbard picking up three first downs before Dalton made a shot downfield that was intercepted by AJ Terrell.

All of Carolina’s momentum slipped away.

The Falcons quickly took advantage and pounded away at Carolina’s worn defense, covering 84 yards in nine plays for the go-ahead touchdown. Behind the bold one-two punch of Robinson and Allgeier, Atlanta ran the ball seven times on the drive for 70 yards and four first downs before Allgeier scored on a 2-yard burst with 5:38 left.

“You get into situations like that in a one-score game and we just have to finish it,” Panthers coach Dave Canales said. “There’s nothing else to say other than that. We have to finish on our terms and be able to achieve that, get a two-point chance and make a game of it. We have to learn how to put together a full game.”

The Falcons (4-2) jumped out to a 22-17 halftime lead after touchdowns of 5 and 7 yards from Robinson and perfectly thrown TD strike from Cousins ​​to Landon on a slant route on third down.

The Panthers made things difficult for themselves with a variety of self-inflicted mistakes, including three false starts, a bad snap, a botched pass, a failed blocking assignment and a miscommunication on a handoff that required Dalton to corral the ball and dive forward for a while. short profit. There was also an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the Falcons’ second touchdown, which prompted Raheem Morris to go for an extra point, resulting in a 2-point conversion by Allgeier after the ball was spotted at the 1.

But Dalton’s two touchdown passes — a 10-yarder to Diontae Johnson and a 7-yarder to rookie Xavier Legette in the back left corner of the end zone just before halftime — and a pair of nifty runs kept the Panthers within striking distance at the break.

Morris credited his defense with holding Carolina to a field goal in the second half, while intercepting Dalton twice to seal the game.

“We talked about running the South,” Morris said. “Anytime you get a chance to get three wins in a row, it’s great. That’s what we want to be about. So why not just keep winning? Someone has to do it.”

Injuries

Falcons: S Micah Abernathy injured his knee early in the first quarter and was ruled out for the remainder of the game. Morris said the injury was not good. S Justin Simmons left the game in the fourth quarter as a precaution with a hamstring injury.

Panthers: LB Claudin Cherelus left the game in the second half with a hamstring injury and did not return.

Next

Falcons: Host Seattle next Sunday.

Panthers: Next Sunday at Washington.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl