Dee Alford’s red-zone interception stopped a potential go-ahead drive by New Orleans, and the Atlanta Falcons beat the Saints 19-17 to give the NFC South title to the Carolina Panthers. By closing the season with four consecutive wins, the Falcons finished in a three-way tie with Carolina and Tampa Bay for first place in the NFC South.
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Here's how to dry out your smartphoneWhy home maintenance deserves a spot in the annual health and budget plansEEUU planea “gobernar” Venezuela y explotar su petróleo, dice Trump, tras sacar a Maduro del paísSportsAtlanta Falcons cornerback Dee Alford celebrates his interception with linebacker Josh Woods in the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints running back Audric Estime is tripped up by Atlanta Falcons safety Jessie Bates III in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. carries against Atlanta Falcons cornerback C.J. Henderson in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough passes against the Atlanta Falcons in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. carries between Atlanta Falcons cornerback Dee Alford and linebacker Divine Deablo in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. Atlanta Falcons cornerback Dee Alford celebrates his interception with linebacker Josh Woods in the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. Atlanta Falcons cornerback Dee Alford celebrates his interception with linebacker Josh Woods in the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints running back Audric Estime is tripped up by Atlanta Falcons safety Jessie Bates III in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints running back Audric Estime is tripped up by Atlanta Falcons safety Jessie Bates III in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. carries against Atlanta Falcons cornerback C.J. Henderson in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. carries against Atlanta Falcons cornerback C.J. Henderson in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough passes against the Atlanta Falcons in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough passes against the Atlanta Falcons in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. carries between Atlanta Falcons cornerback Dee Alford and linebacker Divine Deablo in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. New Orleans Saints wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. carries between Atlanta Falcons cornerback Dee Alford and linebacker Divine Deablo in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Atlanta. ATLANTA — Dee Alford’s red-zone interception stopped a potential go-ahead drive by New Orleans, and the Atlanta Falcons beat the Saints 19-17 on Sunday to give the NFC South title to the Carolina Panthers. By closing the season with four consecutive wins, the Falcons finished in a three-way tie with Carolina and Tampa Bay for first place in the NFC South. The Panthers won the tiebreaker with the best record within the division.over Carolina on Saturday. The Buccaneers needed a win or tie by the Saints on Sunday to win the division. The Panthers made the playoffs for the first time since 2017 and won the division for the first time in a decade. Trailing 16-10, the Saints drove from their 25 to the Atlanta 20 before Alford returned his interception of Tyler Shough’s pass intended for Dante Pettis 59 yards to the Saints 27 with 3:14 remaining. The play set up Zane Gonzalez’s fourth field goal, a 38-yarder, to extend Atlanta’s lead to nine points. Shough answered with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Ronnie Bell with 1:11 remaining, but Atlanta’s Kyle Pitts recovered an onside kick. While the NFC South winner was the big prize in the game, the Saints and Falcons played the opening quarter as if determined to show why they had long been eliminated from postseason contention. On the Saints’ first play from scrimmage, tight end Juwan Johnson fumbled after a 26-yard reception and Xavier Watts recovered for Atlanta. The Falcons then gave the ball back when defensive end Carl Granderson, who already had a sack, intercepted a pass from Kirk Cousins. Later in the opening quarter, Falcons safety Jammie RobinsonA Falcons penalty negated an apparent touchdown run by Bijan Robinson before Cousins’ 15-yard touchdown pass to Drake London. The Saints were denied a touchdown on an apparent 1-yard scoring pass from Shough to Kevin Austin Jr. in the third quarter when Austin was called for offensive pass interference. Instead, Charlie Smyth’s 29-yard field goal trimmed Atlanta’s lead to 13-10. Shough completed 22 of 35 passes for 259 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He also ran for a score.Rookie James Pearce Jr. sacked Shough on back-to-back plays in the third quarter. It gave the Falcons four sacks in the game and a team-record 57 for the season. The Falcons entered the weekend second in the league with 53 after finishing next-to-last with 31 last season.Saints: LT Kelvin Banks Jr. was ruled out after he was carted to the locker room in the second quarter. QB/TE Taysom Hill left with a right shoulder injury. Falcons: CB Cobee Bryant was knocked out of the game late in the first quarter. ... DL Brandon Dorlus , CB Clark Phillips and ILB Ronnie Harrison were held out. Harrison, Cousins and DL David Onyemata were all added to the injury list on Sunday with illnesses, while CB A.J. Terrell, DL Ruke Orhorhoro and long snapper Liam McCullough were listed as questionable with illnesses.Saints: New Orleans will look forward to the NFL draft. The Saints entered the week holding the No. 8 overall pick. Falcons: Atlanta heads into an offseason of possible changes as there has been speculation about the futures of second-year coach Raheem Morris and general manager Terry Fontenot.Odum has been covering Atlanta professional sports for The Associated Press for more than 20 years. Odum also covers Georgia and Georgia Tech as well as other major events in the state, including NASCAR.
Kirk Cousins Tyler Shough Ronnie Harrison Jr. Ronnie Harrison New Orleans Saints Atlanta Falcons Carl Granderson Kevin Austin Jr. Liam Mccullough Ronnie Bell David Onyemata Charlie Smyth Brandon Dorlus Xavier Watts Dante Pettis Carolina Panthers Football Atlanta LA State Wire NFL NC State Wire North Carolina Georgia GA State Wire Florida Local News For Apple FL State Wire Louisiana Sports Ruke Orhorhoro Kai Kroeger Taysom Hill NFL Football Feleipe Franks Dee Alford Jammie Robinson Terry Fontenot Kyle Pitts Kelvin Banks Jr. Clark Phillips Raheem Morris Cobee Bryant Bijan Robinson Juwan Johnson Drake London
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