The New Orleans Saints celebrated the 20th anniversary of the legendary “Domecoming” game Monday night.
And their rival Atlanta Falcons (2-2, 1-1) naturally couldn’t spoil the occasion fast enough.
Bijan Robinson popped a 59-yard touchdown run to the left side on the third snap of the night that proved a sign of the onslaught to come both from the fourth-year running back and the team in the 45-24 cruise through Caesars Superdome.
Robinson gashed New Orleans (1-3, 0-1) for 145 yards and two first-quarter scores on 19 carries to continue his track record of prolific performances on primetime stages, and teammate Brian Robinson began gradually adding 62 yards and three touchdowns on 14 attempts to the Falcons’ most explosive performance of the season thus far.
“Primetime games are fun,” Bijan Robinson smiled on ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” broadcast postgame. “I always tell the guys these are the moments where everybody’s watching you and you just want to prove to your team and to yourself, right, that we have to continue to be great in these moments. These are what bring us closer together. So I love the primetime game under the lights. It brings out a different energy, and I just love it for this team.”
There wasn’t much for him not to love as the Saints had few answers for the Robinsons’ combined 200-plus yards that helped set up a balanced offensive performance overall for Atlanta en route to a 24-7 lead at halftime and as much as 45-17 midway through the fourth quarter.
Third-year quarterback Michael Penix Jr. finished 15-for-20 for 223 yards with a 31-yard touchdown to wide receiver Jahan Dotson and five connections with Drake London for a team-high 96 yards.
Atlanta scored on seven of its nine completed possessions, including six touchdowns.
New Orleans meanwhile stumbled out of the gates again with a three-and-out, missed field goal and lost fumble in the first quarter before finding much of its yardage and scoring later in the contest in an already-uphill battle that proved insurmountable.
Second-year quarterback Tyler Shough finished 30-for-48 for 286 yards and a late 3-yard touchdown to third-year receiver Devaughn Vele.
Star wide receiver Chris Olave led all receivers with eight catchers for 116 yards, and veteran running back Alvin Kamara rushed seven times for 23 yards and scores in the second and fourth quarters and caught five passes for 35 yards.
The Saints ran 69 plays to Atlanta’s 56 and kept close in the time of possession, trailing by just 1:30, but fell behind early and couldn’t stop the Falcons from parading their way to 420 yards.
New Orleans native and former LSU star Harold Perkins Jr., a sixth-round pick in this spring’s rookie draft, helped lead Atlanta with 10 tackles, including 0.5 sacks, and a deflected pass.
Veteran corner C.J. Henderson also wrapped up 10 tackles, forced and recovered the early fumble and deflected a pass.
Safety Julian Blackmon led the Saints with 10 tackles, and defensive end Tyree Wilson and safety Jonas Sanker had six tackles each, including a sack for Wilson.
New Orleans will be home for a third straight game next Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings (4-0) and potentially star wide receiver Justin Jefferson if the former Destrehan and LSU star is able to return from his sprained ankle that sidelined him this week.
