The Packers-Falcons matchup has never carried the weight of a classic rivalry, but it has still given Green Bay plenty of memorable nights. The two teams are set to meet for the 37th time in the regular season tomorrow night, and the Packers’ best individual showings against Atlanta stretch from the modern era all the way back to 1970.
Aaron Rodgers owns the top passing performance on the list. In 2011, as he rolled toward his first MVP award, Rodgers torched Atlanta for 396 yards. James Jones was his favorite target that night, finishing with 140 receiving yards, and his 70-yard touchdown in the third quarter put Green Bay ahead for the first time in a game the Packers went on to win 25-14.
On the ground, Ahman Green set the standard in 2002. He handled 27 carries for 155 yards and helped lift the Packers to a 37-34 overtime win at Lambeau Field.
Green also chipped in 42 receiving yards on six catches. Samkon Gado deserves a mention too, after rushing for 103 yards and two touchdowns in Atlanta in 2005.
Donny Anderson also made his mark against the Falcons, becoming the only Packers player to top 100 rushing yards against them twice, doing it in 1968 and 1969.
The biggest receiving day belongs to Carroll Dale, not James Jones or Jordy Nelson. Dale caught four passes for 186 yards and two touchdowns in 1970, including an 89-yard touchdown from Don Horn that gave Green Bay the lead for good. Horn’s throw traveled 56 yards in the air, a number that would have led the NFL in 2025.
When it comes to scoring, Samkon Gado and Robert Tonyan share the top spot. Gado scored three touchdowns in that 2005 game, with two on the ground and one through the air to finish off a four-catch, five-yard receiving line. Tonyan also scored three times against Atlanta in 2020 as part of a lopsided Packers win.
Defensively, Tim Harris posted the top sack total with four in 1989 at Milwaukee County Stadium, including one on the Falcons’ final drive to help secure a 23-21 Packers victory. Za’Darius Smith had three sacks against Atlanta in Green Bay’s 2020 win at Lambeau Field, and now that he’s with the Falcons, there’s a chance he could threaten that mark again, especially if he’s working against Anthony Belton.
Blake Martinez leads the way in tackles, piling up 11 solo stops in the Packers’ 34-20 win over Atlanta in 2018. That game came a week after Mike McCarthy was fired and gave Green Bay its first of two wins in the short-lived Joe Philbin era.
In playoff and regular-season games combined, three Packers have recorded two interceptions in a game against the Falcons. Herb Adderley did it first in 1968.
Mark Murphy, not that one, matched it in a 1988 shutout loss in Atlanta. Tramon Williams delivered the best version, though, with a leaping interception late in the second quarter of the Packers’ 2010 Divisional Round win.
That play set up what became the go-ahead drive, and the Packers scored so quickly that Atlanta still had time to try to rally. They tried…and they got burned.
In Other News...
Packers May Have Found Pass Rush Help At The Perfect Time
The pass rush has been one of Green Bays most watched areas early this season, and rookie edge rusher Dani Dennis-Sutton has started to give the defense a timely boost. Against the Jets, he put together a disruptive afternoon with six tackles, half a sack and two quarterback hits, the kind of activity that shows up on the stat sheet and in the pressure Washington? No, in the pressure he helped create on the opposing quarterback.
For a player taken 120th in the draft, that kind of early production is notable, especially when hes already ranking 15th among edge defenders in pass-rush win rate after two games. The Packers are always looking for help up front, and Dennis-Sutton has at least opened the door to a bigger role by outplaying several rookies selected ahead of him. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Secondary Just Lost Its Biggest Safety Net Before Packers Game
The Falcons defense took a significant hit this week when cornerback A.J. Terrell was placed on injured reserve after suffering a groin injury in a recent game. His absence comes with a real timing issue for Atlanta, too, because he now has to sit out at least four games, putting Week 7 as the earliest possible return. For a secondary that leans on him as its top coverage option, the loss changes the look of the group heading into a matchup that already had plenty of attention.
Atlanta filled the open roster spot by promoting defensive lineman Zach Harrison from the practice squad, but that move does not replace what Terrell gives the back end. For the Packers, it is the kind of development that can alter how a defense chooses to play on the perimeter and in the middle of the field, especially against an opponent that no longer has its biggest safety net available. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Suddenly Face A Receiver Problem Bigger Than Week 3
Jayden Reeds injury has turned a promising early-season stretch into a far more uneasy stretch for the Packers, with the receiver leaving Sundays game against the Jets on a stretcher after a neck injury. Matt LaFleur said Reed is back in Green Bay and going through tests, but the team still does not have a recovery timeline, which leaves Green Bay trying to steady its offense without one of its most dynamic targets.
The immediate concern is Week 3 against the Falcons, where Reed is expected to miss the game and the Packers may have to adjust on the fly. Beyond that, the bigger issue is how long Green Bay could be without him, because this is the kind of injury that can ripple through a passing game well past one Sunday. [Read more 🡒]