Falcons wide receiver Drake London had a career-best three touchdowns in the loss.
London recorded nine catches for 118 yards, with his scores coming on contested jump-balls.
A missed extra point by Falcons kicker Parker Romo was the deciding factor in the game.
FOXBOROUGH, MA – It was a battle between two Drakes. The scoreboard Nov. 2, with the New England Patriots defeating the Atlanta Falcons 24-23, said Maye bested London.
But London, the Falcons’ wideout, had one of the most productive games of his career with three touchdowns and nine catches (14 targets) for 118 yards. Only four times has he had more catches and never had he recorded three scores in a game. His three scores were all of the “50-50, jump-ball” variety in the end zone. The third and final one, with 4:44 left in the game, was a one-handed toe-tapper that should have tied the game at 24. But Falcons kicker Parker Romo missed the extra point wide right and Atlanta came out on the wrong side of the result.
Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said the team’s meeting Nov. 1 focused on “uncommon effort.”
“What he did today was come out and play with uncommon effort,” Morris said. “It wasn’t just Drake, there were some men across the board that played that way trying to give us a win versus a very good football team.”
Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. exploited the matchup with London – 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds – lined up across Patriots cornerback Marcus Jones in the slot. Jones, 5-foot-8, had no chance despite draping himself all over London. It wasn’t for lack of effort. Any NFL cornerback would have struggled against No. 5 on Sunday.
“He’s just being the same person he’s been since I got here – the guy that’s going to make big-time plays in big-time moments,” Penix said. “He did that (Sunday). It was big props to him.”
London also exhibited his route-running skills and showed off his contested-catch prowess – this time outside of the end zone – by rising up with Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez and wrestling the ball away for a 40-yard gain.
London has now racked up more than 110 yards in three of his last four games and has five touchdowns over that stretch.
“That’s just him,” Penix said. “He’s going to go out there and ball out every time he steps on the field. He’s a special player, special person. He does special things each and every week. It’s exciting to see and I’m happy that he’s on our team.”