Raheem Morris admits timeout could have helped Falcons in 4th quarter - ESPN

LANDOVER, Md. — Atlanta Falcons coach Raheem Morris said calling a timeout after a key first-down catch late in the fourth quarter with the score tied Sunday night «could have» been a better decision than running a hurry-up play.

The Falcons had to settle for a 56-yard field goal attempt from Riley Patterson, who is only in his second week with the team. Patterson's kick came up short as time expired, the game went to overtime and the Commanders won, 30-24, on a game-ending Jayden Daniels 2-yard touchdown pass to Zach Ertz.

«In hindsight, it could have been a good decision or a better decision to take that timeout, but I wanted to have the opportunity to move up there,» Morris said. «You always second-guess those things, you can always second-guess those motives. You can always go back and look at it and see if you can get it snapped a little bit quicker.»

On the Falcons' final drive in regulation, quarterback Michael Penix Jr. connected with wide receiver Darnell Mooney for a 25-yard first down to the Falcons' 44-yard line with around 34 seconds left. Rather than calling a timeout — and Atlanta had two left — Morris kept the clock running. On the next play, Penix threw an incomplete pass to Mooney with 17 seconds left.

Morris said he «probably could have» stopped the clock after the Penix completion to Mooney, but was hoping to «save that timeout.»

«I thought we could get to the line of scrimmage and run our operation a little faster there,» Morris said.

Penix then threw incomplete to wide receiver Drake London before a pair of penalties by the Commanders move the Falcons to the Washington 38 with 2 seconds remaining, setting the stage for Patterson's missed field goal attempt.

Patterson's career long was 53 yards. He