Until Sunday, there had never been a 500-yard passer and a 300-yard receiver in a single NFL game, according to Elias Sports Bureau. That changed when Matt Ryan and Julio Jones dominated the Panthers and led the Falcons to a 48-33 victory at the Georgia Dome.
Here's a breakdown of, and some perspective on, their historic day.
Matt Ryan
Ryan broke his own franchise record by throwing for 503 passing yards, doing so by completing 28 of 37 attempts.
He is the 15th QB to throw for 500-plus yards in a game since the AFL/NFL merger.
This was the 43rd-straight regular season game Ryan notched at least 200 passing yards. If he reaches that plateau in each of his next three appearances, he'll break the NFL record in that category, which is currently held by Dan Fouts.
Ryan became the eighth QB in league history to throw for 500 yards and four TDs.
This was the third time Matt Ryan earned 400 passing yards. He is the only quarterback in franchise history to reach that milestone in a regular season game.
Julio Jones
Jones broke his own Falcons record by recording 300 receiving yards. His previous high was 259 yards, tallied in 2014 against the Green Bay Packers.
The Panthers have never allowed more receiving yards in a game in their 26-year history.
Jones is the only player in NFL history to have 250-plus yards receiving in a single game twice.
Only three other players in the Super Bowl era have reached 300 receiving yards: Stephone Paige (309), Calvin Johnson (329) and Flipper Anderson (336).
This was Jones' ninth career game with 150-plus receiving yards, a franchise record.
Those nine 150-yard performances are the most by an active player since Jones entered the league in 2011.
This was the fourth time a Falcon has amassed 200-plus receiving yards in a game. Jones accounts for two of those showings.
