It was foggy. Like, really foggy. If you tuned into NBC on that October night to see the New England Patriots vs Falcons 2017 regular-season showdown, you basically spent half the game staring at a grey wall of mist. It felt symbolic. Seven months earlier, these two teams had played the most insane Super Bowl in history, and now, they were back on the field in Foxborough. Everyone wanted a sequel to the madness of Houston. They wanted the fireworks, the high-flying offense, and maybe a little bit of revenge for Atlanta. Instead, we got a "Fog Bowl" where you could barely see the handoffs, let alone the ghosts of the 28-3 collapse.
Honestly, the hype for this game was borderline toxic. Every pre-game show spent three hours replaying Julian Edelman’s impossible catch and Devonta Freeman’s missed block. You couldn’t escape it. The narrative was simple: Could Matt Ryan and the Falcons exorcise the demons of the biggest choke in sports history? Or would Bill Belichick just remind everyone why the Patriots are the ultimate "we own you" franchise?
By the time the fourth quarter rolled around, the answer was pretty obvious. The Patriots didn't just win; they strangled the life out of the game. It ended 23-7. It wasn't a thriller. It was a funeral for the 2016 Falcons' soul.
The Psychological Scars of 28-3
Football is as much about what's between the ears as what's on the stat sheet. Coming into the New England Patriots vs Falcons 2017 matchup, Atlanta was already reeling. They weren't the same team. Kyle Shanahan, the offensive mastermind who many blamed (fairly or not) for not running the ball to kill the clock in Super Bowl LI, was gone. He took the head coaching job in San Francisco. Steve Sarkisian was in as the new offensive coordinator, and the "flow" just wasn't there.
You could see the hesitation. Every time the Falcons got into the red zone during that 2017 rematch, they looked like they were waiting for something bad to happen. And it did.
Early on, Matt Bryant had a field goal blocked. Later, the Falcons got all the way to the one-yard line. The one-yard line! They tried a jet sweep with Taylor Gabriel that got blown up in the backfield. It was bizarre. It felt like the team was overthinking every single play-call because they were terrified of making another "Super Bowl-sized" mistake. That’s the thing about the Patriots—they don’t just beat you; they make you beat yourself by simply existing.
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Tom Brady vs. The Mist
Tom Brady wasn't even "Super Bowl Tom" that night. He didn't have to be. He finished with 249 yards and two touchdowns, but his efficiency was what mattered. While Matt Ryan was struggling to find his rhythm in the soup-thick fog, Brady was just dinking and dunking. Brandin Cooks caught a touchdown. James White, the unsung hero of the Super Bowl comeback, was out there making people miss again.
The visuals were wild. Because the overhead cameras were useless in the fog, NBC had to rely on the "SkyCam" (the one on wires that hangs over the field). It actually changed how we watch football. For the first time, fans got a Madden-style view of the entire game. You could see the holes opening up before the running back did. It made the New England Patriots vs Falcons 2017 game feel like a video game, even if the actual play on the field was a bit of a slog.
Why Atlanta Couldn't Move On
People love to talk about the "Super Bowl Hangover." It’s a real thing. Since the turn of the century, teams that lose the Super Bowl often struggle the following year. But for the Falcons, it was deeper. They were a historically great offense in 2016. In 2017, they were just... fine.
The defense, led by Dan Quinn, actually played okay in the rematch. They held the Pats to 23 points. In the modern NFL, if you hold Tom Brady to 23, you’re supposed to win. But the Falcons' offense, the unit that put up 34 points a game the year before, looked totally out of sync.
- Julio Jones had a decent night with 99 yards and a late touchdown, but it was garbage time.
- Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman combined for less than 80 yards on the ground.
- Matt Ryan looked frustrated.
The Patriots' secondary, which had been struggling significantly early in that 2017 season (they gave up huge yards to the Panthers and Texans earlier that month), suddenly looked like a brick wall. Stephon Gilmore was finding his footing. Malcolm Butler was playing with a chip on his shoulder. It was a vintage Belichick masterclass: take away what the opponent does best and make them beat you with their left hand. Atlanta didn't have a left hand.
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The Fog as a Character
You can't talk about this game without the fog. It was legendary. It rolled in off the coast and just sat on Gillette Stadium like a heavy blanket.
Broadcaster Al Michaels and analyst Cris Collinsworth were literally guessing what was happening on the far side of the field. At one point, Dion Lewis broke off a run, and the announcers didn't even realize he had the ball until he was ten yards downfield. It added this eerie, supernatural vibe to the game. It felt like the football gods were trying to hide the Falcons' embarrassment from the world.
The Stats That Actually Mattered
Forget the yardage for a second. The most telling stat of the New England Patriots vs Falcons 2017 game was the "failed fourth down" and the "blocked kick."
- The blocked field goal by Cassius Marsh.
- The turnover on downs at the goal line.
- The zero-for-two efficiency in the red zone for Atlanta.
New England didn't need a miracle comeback this time. They didn't need to score 31 unanswered points. They just stayed disciplined. That’s the gap between these two franchises during that era. One team was waiting for the wheels to fall off, and the other team was the one loosening the lug nuts.
A Turning Point for Both Teams
Interestingly, this game was a bit of a springboard for the Patriots. After a shaky 2-2 start to the season, this win moved them to 5-2 and re-established them as the kings of the AFC. They would eventually ride that momentum all the way back to Super Bowl LII (though they’d lose that one to Nick Foles and the Eagles in a shootout).
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For Atlanta, this was the moment the "Super Bowl window" started to creak shut. They finished the season 10-6 and actually won a playoff game against the Rams, but the aura of invincibility they had in 2016 was gone. They were just another good-but-not-great team. They haven't really been the same since.
Lessons from the 2017 Rematch
If you’re looking back at this game for betting insights, historical context, or just pure nostalgia, there are a few things to take away.
First, the "rematch" is rarely as good as the original. The emotional weight of the Super Bowl is impossible to replicate in Week 7. Second, coaching changes matter more than talent. Losing Kyle Shanahan broke the Falcons' offensive identity in a way they still haven't fully recovered from years later. Third, if you're playing in Foxborough in October, check the weather report.
What most people get wrong about this game is thinking it was a "revenge" game. It wasn't. Revenge implies the two teams were on equal footing. On that night in the fog, the Patriots proved they were in a completely different stratosphere of mental toughness.
Next Steps for the History Buff or Fan:
- Watch the SkyCam footage: If you can find the condensed highlights, watch the game from the wire-camera perspective. It’s the best way to see how the Patriots' offensive line manipulated the Falcons' pass rush.
- Analyze the Play-Calling: Compare Steve Sarkisian’s red-zone calls in this game to Shanahan’s from the year before. You'll see a distinct lack of creativity that plagued the 2017 Falcons.
- Study the 2017 Patriots Defense: Look at how they transitioned from a "bend-but-break" unit in September to a top-tier scoring defense by late October. This game was the catalyst for that shift.
The 2017 rematch wasn't the classic everyone wanted, but it was the reality check Atlanta probably needed. It confirmed that the Super Bowl collapse wasn't just a fluke—it was a fracture in the foundation.