Atlanta, Georgia (AP)--

Lawyer Milloy knocks Kurt Warner out for the game with this hit.

Keith Brooking knew what he had to do, the only question was if his teammates would listen.
With his Falcons dead in the water, trailing 17-0 at halftime against the Arizona Cardinals, Keith Brooking gave a motivating speech to his team which not only fired up his teammates but got the whole organization pumped as well. The Falcons used this momentum provided by the veteran Brooking to comeback and defeat the Cardinals in the forth quarter, 31-24, the winning score coming from an interception return from the charismatic Brooking with under a minute to go.
It was all smooth sailing for the visiting Cardinals, who led comfortably throughout the whole game, before Atlanta made a stunning rally in the forth quarter. Leading 17-3 late in the third quarter, the game took a change for the worse for Arizona, as their QB Kurt Warner, who was having a superb day, took a vicious hit courtesy of S Lawyer Milloy. The hit knocked Warner out for the game and the following three weeks, as x-rays showed he suffered a torn pectoral. The injuring to Warner seemed to be the turning point of the game, as backup rookie QB Matt Leinart was unable to maintain the lead, and his throw with the game tied was the one picked off by Brooking and returned for the score, completing the comeback and leading Atlanta to the win when they trailed 24-10 late in the contest.
The game began as an offensive struggle as both teams struggled to put together a scoring drive. Arizona showed early signs of an outburst as new acquisition RB Edgerrin James ran the ball consistently for 5 and 6 yards, allowing Warner to convert on short third down throws to open receivers. Warner particularly went after Falcons struggling rookie CB Jimmy Williams, who had problems covering his man throughout the day. The Falcons offense started slow, as RB Warrick Dunn, who started the season with three 100 plus rushing games, struggled to find open field as the Cardinal front four filled the gaps.
After a scoreless first quarter, Arizona finally broke the deadlock. Once again Williams was the suspect of the trouble, as Warner lob a pass over the 6-2 Williams which was caught by the 6-3 Larry Fitzgerald for the opening score. The big play setting up the touchdown came on a 47 yard hookup between Warner and Fitzgerald who had beaten the flat footed Williams. The Falcons offense seemed to have been awoken by the Cardinal touchdown, as Michael Vick started picking up first downs with both his arm and legs, however the drive went for nothing as Michael Koenen 54 yarder was blocked, leaving the Falcons scoreless and still in a 7-0 whole.

Michael Jenkins makes the catch by the sideline for the game tying score.

The hole grew larger soon after the field goal miss as Warner found WR Anquan Boldin for a 56 yard completion, this time unusually beating the shutdown corner DeAngelo Hall. Things then went from bad to worse for Atlanta before halftime as Fitzgerald beat Williams again for another long completion putting Arizona in prime position for a 44 yarder from Neil Rackers on the stroke of halftime.
Down 17-0 at halftime, Atlanta looked lost and found themselves searching for answers, they had been outplayed on the offensive side as they garnered on 93 yards of total offense to the Cards 250, and Warrick Dunn 100 yard streak looked all but gone as he rushed for only 7 yards on 8 attempts in the first half. However the answer would be found, and the resolver would be Brooking, who gave a “speech for the ages” as coach Jim Mora said, which restored some pride in the moral defeated Falcons. Before the start of the second half, Mora pulled Williams for the second time in as many weeks, replacing him with Jason Webster who played another solid second half.
The Falcons clearly looked like a rejuvenated team in the second half, as they put up their first points of the game in third quarter as Michael Koenen connected from 34 after Atlanta’s drive stalled inside the redzone. A glimmer of hope was witnessed in the third quarter, as the future situation for the Falcons at the cornerback position was solidified as Warner dropped back looking deep for Fitzgerald again. But this time inside of a long pass completion DeAngelo Hall, who was following the speeding Fitzgerald step-for-step, leaped up and deflected the pass. The Falcons still trailed 17-3, but then the game changing moment came, as Warner suffered the blow to the chest. Showing a bull rush blitz Atlanta rushed 7, Milloy got to Warner as he released the pass, knocking him across the chest. Warner lay hopeless on the ground, and after be taken off the field on a stretcher, Matt Leinart took over the reigns under center. Leinart had a stellar collegiate resume, after leading USC to back-to-back national championship and getting drafted 10th overall in the 2006 draft.
The Falcons began their first attempt at a forth quartet comeback as Vick threw his first touchdown pass of the afternoon hooking up with Roddy White on a crucial third and goal for a touchdown. The touchdown was set up with a 20 yard completion to TE Alge Crumpler on third and seventeen keeping the drive alive, and allowing the Falcons to pull closer at 17-10. However, Edgerrin James was set on killing the clock and giving his new team the win. James continued to rush for good gains to give Arizona first down before bursting up the middle, outrunning hopeless lineman and safeties for a 43 yard touchdown score. With the score now at 24-10 with just under four minutes to play it looked as if James had provided the preverbal nail in the coffin.

Keith Brooking jogs into the endzone for the game winning touchdown score.

Vick, who has played the best football of the season in the forth quarter this year, didn’t give up, as he still had hoped of another forth quarter comeback. After marching his unit down the field, Crumpler stole a reception from the hands of Adrian Wilson who looked to have the clinching interception, giving Atlanta a TD score and a 24-17 scoreline, but the clock now seemed to be Atlanta’s worst enemy.
After forcing a three and out on three runs, the Falcons got the ball back at the stroke of the two minute warning, with the prospects of a overtime game as their best case scenario. Once again it was Vick who was the deciding factor. A 16 yard pass interference penalty and a 34 yard hookup with Ashley Lelie, Vick rolled out inside the 10 yard line before throwing to the corner of the endzone where Michael Jenkins made a great catch keeping both feet in play for the touchdown, and tying the score up with under a minute to play.
Overtime seemed destined as Arizona came out running the football after returning the kickoff. But after quickly changing to a no huddle offense, Arizona had victory in mind. The switch in the end was the deciding factor on the game, as on the first play after the switch to no huddle, Leinart was picked by Brooking, who outran the Cardinal offense all the way to the endzone, sending all of the Georgia Dome into a frenzy, completing the huge comeback and giving Atlanta the win, after it looked like the they were destined for the loss.
Brooking was the Falcons catalyst on the day both off the field and on it where he record 9 tackles (2 for a loss) and a game winning interception returned for a touchdown. Falcons defensive ends John Abraham and Patrick Kerney each recorded their first sacks of the season in the victory. With Dunn only rushing for a modest 77 yards Vick passed the ball extremely well for 232 yards and three touchdown scores all coming in the forth quarter, where Atlanta outscored the Cardinals 28-7.
The momentum however will be unable to be carried into next week as the Falcons now set off on their bye week, where the situation of Jimmy Williams will be assessed before they square off against Eli Manning and the New York Giant in two weeks time.

Game Boxscore.