View images from the Week 15 game between San Francisco and Atlanta.
ATLANTA -- The losing streak has reached 13 games.
The San Francisco 49ers fell to the Atlanta Falcons, 41-13, in a Week 15 road game from the Georgia Dome. Atlanta scored touchdowns on four of its first five possessions and never looked back.
Here's what we learned on Sunday.
Atlanta's Offense is Elite
Well, we probably didn't learn this on Sunday, but it was certainly confirmed in Week 15. Matt Ryan and the league's highest scoring offense put up 28 points in the first half. Devonta Freeman scored two touchdowns in the opening two quarters and totaled 77 yards on 11 carries. Atlanta's No. 2 running back Tevin Coleman added six carries for 51 yards.
Ryan kept a perfect passer rating of 158.3 going into halftime. The quarterback completed 12-of-14 passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns. Taylor Gabriel caught the first score and tight end Austin Hooper caught the second.
The Falcons racked up 319 total yards and 18 first downs in the first half with an average of 9.7 yards per play.
Ryan finished the game with 286 passing yards, two touchdowns and a rating of 144.5. Matt Schaub replaced Ryan with 6:15 left to go in the game. Freeman added a third score in the second half on a 34-yard run, and tallied 139 yards on 20 carries.
Atlanta ended up with 550 yards of total offense.
Second-quarter Surge Kept 49ers Afloat
Despite Atlanta's offensive surge, Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers produced two touchdown drives in the first half to remain in striking distance. The first was a six-play, 75-yard drive. A deep ball down the middle from Kaepernick to Blake Bell gained 45-yards. The quarterback followed with a dart up the left seam for a 16-yard touchdown to Garrett Celek.
Kaepernick also engineered a 13-play, 75-yard scoring drive just before the end of the half. The 49ers moved the ball methodically down the field with Rod Streater capping the possession with a 5-yard touchdown reception. It was Streater's first score since Week 1 of the 2014 season.
Unfortunately, as we've seen all too often this season, the 49ers offense went silent and was shutout in the second half.
Injuries Continue to Mount
Nick Bellore (elbow), Quinton Patton (foot), Blake Bell (shoulder), Marcus Martin (ankle) and Jimmie Ward (shoulder) all left Sunday's game due to injury. Martin's injury forced Zane Beadles to move from left tackle to center. John Theus entered at left tackle which marked his first career game reps.
The 49ers were already thin at inside linebacker before Bellore went down. Gerald Hodges was a healthy inactive due to a coach's decision. That left Michael Wilhoite as the team's only healthy player at the position. Ahmad Brooks took a majority of the snaps at inside linebacker in Bellore's place with safety Vinnie Sunseri also seeing playing time.
It's a roster that has been ravaged by injuries all season long. San Francisco entered the game without eight of its Week 1 starters.
Niner Nuggets:
-- JaCorey Shepherd recorded a career-long 41-yard kick return in the first quarter. It was also the 49ers longest since 2014.
-- Pierre Garçon ran the ball 13 times for 71 yards.
-- Antoine Bethea led the 49ers defense with 10 tackles.