Atlanta Falcons WR Drake London Has Career Day in Loss vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Atlanta Falcons were unable to secure a divisional win on Sunday, but they did see a huge game from wide receiver Drake London.

The Atlanta Falcons may have dropped a 29-25 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday afternoon, but the offense saw a huge boost from wide receiver Drake London in Week 14.

London was praised this week by Falcons head coach Arthur Smith despite only recording one reception against the New York Jets last Sunday, and it appears that he took the praise to heart, hauling in 10 catches for 172 yards in the loss against the Bucs. That reception total was part of a 347-yard day from quarterback Desmond Ridder in the passing game, some monster numbers to put up in a losing effort.

Even though London did not have a big game last week against the Jets, his energy and willingness to win was enough for his head coach to claim that he is having a "heck of a season." The wideout admitted that he always wants the ball, but even if he doesn't have a lot of catches, he just wants to win.

Dec 10, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London (5) catches a pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium / © Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

His team lost on Sunday, but with more performances like this one, London will help the Falcons win more than they lose.

"The competitor in me absolutely wants the ball," London said, via The Falcoholic's Allen Strk. "Everyone wants their time at some point. It comes down to understanding how the game is going. You can’t get frustrated by it. We got the win. We are all about stacking these wins right now. If the ball isn’t coming to me as much when we win, I have to be understanding. Our team is focused on winning."

Falcons Fall to Bucs as Late Comeback Falls Short

Still, Sunday's loss is a big one in Atlanta. If the Falcons want to make the playoffs, they likely need to win the struggling NFC South, and dropping a game to a divisional opponent to fall back below .500 is not a winning recipe to that end. Still, if there are bright spots to glean from this loss, the brightest is London's performance on the day.

The Falcons offense has not always been strong this season, but with young talent like this at the wide receiver position, the future appears to be rather bright.