The most unusual play occurred when Thomas Morstead's punt hit Atlanta's Thomas DeCoud on the heel as it came down near the sideline and bounced straight up. Rookie tight end Jimmy Graham grabbed it and, just before falling out of bounds, tossed it back to long-snapper Jason Kyle, who tapped toes on both feet down like a receiver just inside the sideline.

New Orleans converted the turnover into Moore's second TD, a 16-yard catch and run for a 21-17 lead late in the third quarter.

Atlanta responded with an 80-yard drive to regain the lead in the fourth quarter, with Ryan converting a third-and-10 with a pass to Gonzalez and another third down with his scoring strike to White.

Brees, who was 30 of 38 for 365 yards and three TDs, drove the Saints into game-tying field goal range at the end of the fourth quarter, in part by converting a fourth-and-1 pass to Shockey for a 6-yard gain.

Last season, Hartley sent the Saints to the franchise's first Super Bowl with an overtime game-winner in the NFC title game and made three field goals during the Super Bowl. He also clinched the Saints' Week 2 win at San Francisco last Monday night with a 37-yard, partially blocked field goal at the end of regulation.

He just couldn't come through in OT this time, but his teammates tried to deflect the blame elsewhere. Brees cited his two first-half interceptions. Brent Grimes picked off the first on a long, inaccurate pass. DeCoud got the second when Brees tried an ill-advised, Brett Favre-style underhanded flip as he fell forward.

Brees also was sacked by John Abraham and Jonathan Babineaux, and rookie Chris Ivory fumbled on a fourth-and-1 play at the Atlanta 32.

"It's not just about missing the field goal at the end," Brees said. "There were a lot of things prior to that."

Ryan minimized mistakes, going 19 of 30 with no interceptions and taking only one sack by Will Smith.

The third-year quarterback showcased his determination and accuracy on a 19-play, 72-yard drive that consumed 10:39 of the second quarter and tied the game on Turner's TD at 14 shortly before halftime. Ryan converted a third-and-short with a quarterback keeper that required a second effort. He converted another third down with a pass to Gonzalez along the sideline while scrambling right. Then he converted two fourth-and-short plays with quick passes over the middle.

"I am so proud of how we converted (nine) third downs," Ryan said. "That was a huge factor throughout the game."

Notes: Hartley is 4 of 7 on field goals this season. ... Saints CB Tracy Porter left the game with a tight right hamstring and missed most of regulation before returning briefly in overtime. ... The Falcons are now 1-1 in OT this season, including a season opening loss at Pittsburgh.

NFL game stories Quick look at Week 3 games JETS 31, DOLPHINS 23: Edwards returns to makes key TD catch  |    Highlights COWBOYS 27, TEXANS 13: Dallas avoids rare 0-3 start  |    Romo excited FALCONS 27, SAINTS 24, OT: Champs miss short FG in OT  |    Saints explain loss TITANS 29, GIANTS 10: Johnson scores 2 TDs  |    Coughlin takes blame EAGLES 28, JAGUARS 3: Vick makes Reid's decision look great  |    QB thrilled COLTS 27, BRONCOS 13: Manning throws 3 TD passes VIKINGS 24, LIONS 10: Peterson's career-long 80-yard TD keys win PATRIOTS 38, BILLS 30: 14th straight win in series for New England SEAHAWKS 27, CHARGERS 20: Washington has two kickoff returns for TDs CHIEFS 31, 49ERS 10: K.C. 3-0 for first time since '03  |    Chiefs confident STEELERS 38, BUCCANEERS 13: Batch shines in first start in 3 years RAMS 30, REDSKINS 16: Only second win in last 29 games for St. Louis RAVENS 24, BROWNS 17: Flacco fires 3 TD passes BENGALS 20, PANTHERS 7: Clausen struggles in first NFL start CARDINALS 24, RAIDERS 23: Janikowski misses 32-yard FG on final play

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