2. Michael Penix Jr.'s debut
A win against the Giants was always expected when you consider the lack of talent on their roster. However, this same Giants team would knock the Colts out of the playoff chase a week later. Drew Lock was unstoppable in that game, and it would have been on-brand for it to happen to the Falcons. As a reminder, the Falcons struggled to beat the Raiders the week before.
Unable to move the ball consistently the defense had to get a final stop to win the game. Twice Desmond Ridder was handed the chance to beat his old team and was unable to get the job done. A week later the Falcons looked to be a playoff team blowing the Giants off the field and putting the game out of reach quickly.
This is the type of performance that is expected of a playoff team against a lesser roster. It gave the Falcons hope their season wasn't over and that they had the quarterback of the future. It didn't hurt either the Bucs would suffer a bad loss to Cooper Rush and the Cowboys opening the door up for Atlanta to win the division.