2015 Week 17 · Sun, Jan 3, 2016 · Georgia Dome
New Orleans SaintsWinner
20
at
Atlanta Falcons
17
ATL -6 upsetU 53.5 ✓Dome
New Orleans Saints 20–17 — decided on the final possessions.
Pre-2018 game — box score & context only; play-by-play visuals start in 2018
Who moved the needle
Top performers
Passing · ATL
24/36, 334 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
13.7 expected points added · +0.9% completion over expected
Passing · NO
32/42, 323 yds, 1 TD, 0 INT
12.3 expected points added · +10.8% completion over expected
Full stat lines
Box score
New Orleans Saints
Passing
| Player | C/Att | Yds | TD | INT | Sacked | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drew Brees | 32/42 | 323 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12.3 |
| Travaris Cadet | 0/1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -0.4 |
Rushing
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tim Hightower | 16 | 66 | 4.1 | 1 | 2.9 |
| Travaris Cadet | 3 | 6 | 2.0 | 0 | -6.2 |
| Drew Brees | 3 | -5 | -1.7 | 0 | -2.0 |
Receiving
| Player | Rec | Tgt | Yds | TD | Tgt share | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon Coleman | 5 | 8 | 81 | 0 | 19% | 6.5 |
| Travaris Cadet | 6 | 6 | 77 | 0 | 14% | 7.3 |
| Benjamin Watson | 6 | 10 | 59 | 1 | 23% | 2.1 |
| Tim Hightower | 5 | 5 | 41 | 0 | 12% | 1.4 |
| Willie Snead | 3 | 4 | 35 | 0 | 9% | -1.2 |
| Brandin Cooks | 5 | 6 | 22 | 0 | 14% | -1.8 |
| Michael Hoomanawanui | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2% | -0.0 |
| Josh Hill | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 7% | -2.3 |
Defense (top contributors)
| Player | Solo | Ast | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon Browner | 7 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kenny Vaccaro | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ramon Humber | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brian Dixon | 4 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Stephone Anthony | 5 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kyle Wilson | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cameron Jordan | 3 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Richardson | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tyeler Davison | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| David Hawthorne | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Atlanta Falcons
Passing
| Player | C/Att | Yds | TD | INT | Sacked | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Ryan | 24/36 | 334 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 13.7 |
Rushing
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Devonta Freeman | 25 | 76 | 3.0 | 0 | -10.7 |
| Terron Ward | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 0 | 0.6 |
Receiving
| Player | Rec | Tgt | Yds | TD | Tgt share | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Julio Jones | 9 | 11 | 149 | 0 | 31% | 10.8 |
| Jacob Tamme | 4 | 5 | 61 | 0 | 14% | 4.0 |
| Tony Moeaki | 2 | 3 | 47 | 1 | 8% | 3.7 |
| Justin Hardy | 4 | 6 | 34 | 0 | 17% | -0.6 |
| Devonta Freeman | 2 | 4 | 18 | 1 | 11% | -1.5 |
| Roddy White | 1 | 4 | 10 | 0 | 11% | -1.0 |
| Levine Toilolo | 1 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 6% | 0.2 |
| Patrick DiMarco | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 3% | 0.4 |
Defense (top contributors)
| Player | Solo | Ast | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Worrilow | 5 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Robert Alford | 8 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Charles Godfrey | 6 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Justin Durant | 2 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kemal Ishmael | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| O'Brien Schofield | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brooks Reed | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Desmond Trufant | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nate Stupar | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ricardo Allen | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Closing number vs result
Betting context
- Closing spread
- ATL -6
- Closing total
- 53.5
- NO moneyline
- +221
- ATL moneyline
- -248
Falcons closed -6 and lost outright — an upset against the closing number.
Total closed 53.5; the game landed 37 — under by 16.5.
Conditions and crew
Game environment
- Venue
- Georgia Dome
- Roof / surface
- dome · fieldturf
- Kickoff weather
- Indoors — weather neutralized
- Referee
- Craig Wrolstad
- Rest
- NO 7 days · ATL 7 days
- Coaches
- Sean Payton vs Dan Quinn
Division game — familiarity tightens these matchups; closing numbers tend to be sharper.