Falcons Lose Momentum - and Possibly More - After Controversial Call in First Half vs. Seahawks
At halftime in Atlanta, it’s a 6-6 deadlock between the Falcons and Seahawks - but that score doesn’t tell the full story. If not for a controversial officiating decision, the Falcons might’ve taken a lead into the locker room. Instead, they’re left wondering what could’ve been after a would-be touchdown from Kirk Cousins to Darnell Mooney was wiped off the board.
Let’s break it down.
On what looked like a 25-yard scoring strike late in the second quarter, Cousins hit Mooney in stride near the sideline. The play was ruled a touchdown on the field, but after a replay review, officials determined Mooney had stepped out of bounds prior to the catch - and despite re-establishing himself in bounds, the ruling was overturned. Instead of six points, the Falcons settled for a 43-yard field goal from Zane Gonzalez.
And that’s where things started to unravel.
NFL rules analyst Mike Pereira noted during the broadcast that while Mooney did step out, he clearly re-established himself with multiple steps in bounds. By rule, that should’ve been enough.
It wasn’t. The touchdown was taken off the board, and the Falcons were left with three points - a tough pill to swallow in a game where every inch matters.
To make matters worse, Seattle responded immediately. On the ensuing kickoff, Rashid Shaheed took it 100 yards to the house. In a matter of minutes, what could’ve been a 10-3 or 10-6 Falcons lead turned into a tie game - and a huge momentum swing in favor of the Seahawks.
That sequence - the overturned touchdown, the field goal, and the kick return - felt like a gut punch. And for a Falcons team sitting at 4-8 and fighting to stay mathematically alive in the NFC playoff picture, it couldn’t have come at a worse time.
Cousins and Mooney looked to have connected on the first touchdown of the game, a huge moment against a 9-3 Seahawks squad that’s been one of the league’s biggest surprises this season. Instead, Atlanta’s offense was forced off the field after the incompletion, which came on third down. With the game tied and the clock winding down in the half, going for it on fourth wasn’t a realistic option.
That context matters. If this play had happened on first or second down and the drive stalled later, maybe the focus would be on execution.
But this wasn’t about play-calling or poor timing. This was a touchdown taken off the board by a ruling that, even by the league’s own rulebook, appears to have been incorrect.
And that’s the kind of thing that can swing not just a game, but a season.
The Falcons have already been walking a tightrope in 2025. With a new-look offense under Zac Robinson and Cousins still working his way into rhythm with a young receiving corps, every possession counts. Add in a costly fumble by Bijan Robinson earlier in the game, and you’ve got a team that can’t afford to have points left on the field - especially not by the officials.
There’s still a half of football left to play, and the Falcons have shown they can hang with one of the NFC’s top teams. But if this one slips away, there’s no question that overturned touchdown will loom large in the postgame conversation.
For a team trying to keep its season alive, that’s a brutal break.