Falcons beat Packers 35-14 at Lambeau as Bijan Robinson rushes 194 in Penix return

On Thursday night at Lambeau Field the Atlanta Falcons defeated the Green Bay Packers 35-14 as Bijan Robinson rushed for 194 yards and two touchdowns and Michael Penix Jr returned from a torn ACL to throw a touchdown pass.

Atlanta erased an early 7-0 deficit by scoring 27 straight points and outrushed Green Bay 242 yards to 17; both teams dropped to 1-2 with the win and loss respectively. The Falcons had struggled offensively in the first two weeks with Cooper Rush starting before Penix’s return.

Penix completed 18 of 25 passes for 256 yards with one touchdown and an interception in his first game since tearing the ACL in his left knee during a loss to Carolina on 16 November. His touchdown pass accounted for Atlanta scoring in the red zone for the first time this season.

Robinson and wide receiver Drake London became the first teammates to each record at least 150 yards from scrimmage against the Packers at Lambeau Field; London caught nine passes for 194 yards. Robinson’s performance was the driving force of Atlanta’s ground game.

Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love finished 28 of 53 for 312 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, while MarShawn Lloyd and Kaleb Johnson combined for 17 yards on eight carries. The Packers were missing left guard Aaron Banks and right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele, the latter having torn his patellar tendon on Sunday and set to miss the rest of the season; Banks was dealing with a toe injury.

Rookie fifth-round pick Jager Burton made his first career start at left guard and 2025 second-round selection Anthony Belton started at right tackle for Green Bay. The Packers had entered the game with an NFL-high 26 penalties through the first two weeks, and another costly call came when Brenton Cox Jr was flagged for roughing the passer on a third-and-11 late in the first quarter.

That penalty set up a 55-yard Robinson run which led directly to his three-yard touchdown, and Robinson’s long rush allowed Atlanta to take a snap inside the opponent’s 20 for the first time this season; Atlanta had been the first team since the 2008 Rams not to run any plays in the red zone through the first two weeks. Atlanta dominated the remainder of the first half and led 17-7 at the break after Nick Folk’s 44-yard field goal with 4:48 left and a five-yard touchdown pass from Penix to Austin Hooper on third-and-goal with 59 seconds remaining; Zach Harrison also blocked Trey Smack’s 47-yard field-goal attempt earlier in the quarter.

Green Bay missed a red-zone chance on its first drive of the second half when Love could not connect with Christian Watson on fourth-and-1 from the 7. Atlanta extended the lead to 24-7 on a seven-yard touchdown run by Brian Robinson that capped a 10-play, 92-yard drive; Folk added a 31-yard field goal early in the fourth, Love threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Matthew Golden with 8:18 remaining, and Bijan Robinson finished the scoring with a two-yard touchdown.

The Packers lost a home opener for the first time since falling 30-22 to the San Francisco 49ers in 2012; Green Bay had won 13 straight home openers from 2013-25, a streak that shared the NFL record with the Miami Dolphins, who won 13 in a row from 1976-88.