ATLANTA — Denver pulled out every trick to deal with a rash of injuries, even starting a player on both offense and defense, and the gritty Broncos managed to put a hurtin' on Atlanta's surprising season.

Jay Cutler threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Daniel Graham with 5 1/2 minutes remaining, the Denver defense held off Matt Ryan's last-gasp drive and Denver rallied for a 24-20 victory today, handing the Falcons their first loss of the season at home.

Michael Turner scored on a 28-yard run to put Atlanta ahead 20-17 with just under 11 minutes left, but the Broncos (6-4) managed to pull out their second straight victory on the road.

Cutler accounted for more than half the distance on the 10-play, 83-yard drive, going 47 yards to Brandon Marshall after the big receiver got a step on Chris Houston. Then, on third-and-goal at the Atlanta 9, Cutler scrambled to his right and spotted Graham for the winning score.

Atlanta (6-4) had won its first four games at the Georgia Dome and four of five overall.

The Broncos played without star cornerback Champ Bailey and all three of their projected starters at linebacker. Spencer Larsen started at both middle linebacker and fullback, the first player in team history to pull off that double.

On offense, Denver has lost five tailbacks, four of them for the season. Coach Mike Shanahan divvied up the carries among three players including Tatum Bell, signed a few days earlier after an ugly departure from Detroit when he was accused of stealing luggage from a teammate.

Cutler completed 19 of 27 passes for 216 yards, while Peyton Hillis, P.J. Pope and Bell combined for 113 yards on 21 carries.

The Denver defense loaded up on the line and held Michael Turner to 81 yards on 25 carries. The rookie Ryan finally showed his age, throwing his first interception at home, and his final bid at rallying the Falcons slipped through the hands of top receiver Roddy White.

After Atlanta drove to the Denver 37 at the two-minute warning, a holding penalty on Tyson Clabo knocked the Falcons back. Ryan went deep for White in the right corner of the end zone, and he had a step on safety Marquand Manuel. But the pass bounced off his hands before he tumbled out of bounds.

Ryan completed 20 of 33 for 250 yards, and White had five receptions for 102 yards — his fifth 100-yard game of the season. But he couldn't pull in the one that really mattered.

Turner had a pair of touchdowns, also scoring from the 9 to give Atlanta a 13-7 lead at halftime. Jason Elam, kicking against the team that he played for the last 15 seasons, booted field goals of 46 and 36 yards for the Falcons.

But the Broncos jumped on Atlanta after halftime. Denver took the kickoff and went 77 yards in 11 plays. Cutler completed four passes for 42 yards, Hillis ripped off a 12-yard run and Pope burst up the middle for a 15-yard gain. Finally, Hillis took it in from the 2 to put the Broncos ahead.

After Ryan was picked off by Dre Bly, Denver ripped off another big drive. Atlanta's defense finally held at a goal line, forcing Denver to settle for Matt Prater's 20-yard field goal that pushed the lead to 17-13.