Here’s what Falcons coach Arthur Smith had to say after the 20-17 loss to the Chargers on Sunday:
On struggles to get off the field on third down on defense: “It was really a drive. What did we hold them to (in the second half), six points? It was 14 at half. So, again, obviously in the first quarter we came out the way we wanted. Then they got us off the field on third down, and on their long drive they overcame a long third down, but that’s a good quarterback and an NFL team, so you kind of go back and forth. They made some plays in the second quarter. We came back in the third quarter. I thought we played pretty well. Obviously, didn’t love the touchdown. I have to look at that. We overcame that, and then we got the fumble and then the turnover and came back and scored. So, a pretty short game. At the end, they made a play or two. So, whether you’re mixing up calls, at the end of the day, they executed better than we did down the stretch.”
On whether the deep shots in the passing game were the primary options or whether that’s QB Marcus Mariota seeing an opportunity: “I’m not going to go through the reads, but they gave us a look. At some point, they had to bring everybody up there to stop the run, and you had to back them off. I have to look at the tape to see exactly what happened. There’s always a risk when you take a shot. Certainly, I tried, and I have to look at the tape.”
On whether there’s a mental aspect of getting over .500: “No. I think that’s a convenient narrative. You know, a lot of times in this league it’s really the matchups week to week, and every game is its own story. So this game right there, there was an ebb and flow, right? First quarter, second quarter, third quarter and then down the stretch. They made one more play than we did, and that was the difference in the game. They kicked a field goal and time expired. Obviously disappointed, but you gotta give the Chargers credit. And we gotta learn from it quick because we gotta turn around because we’ll be playing Thursday night in a big divisional game.”
On the difference between the start in the first quarter and the second quarter: “Yeah, I mean usually what it comes down to is third down – miscommunication error, free hitter. We had a look on the outside, and I don’t think we even got to the top of the drop. So that happened on two third downs, and that’s usually the case. We made some adjustments. Obviously, we didn’t make enough plays, but that’s what happens, especially because it were to happen early in the drive, too. Certainly allowed them to go back out there as we, you know, you feel like you got the momentum, you got them on the ropes a little bit, but that’s the NFL. We gotta find a way, and we’ll continue to do that, and we’ll get back to work tomorrow.”
On his message to DL Ta’Quon Graham after the fumble recovery and fumble late in the fourth quarter: “I back TQ a hundred, thousand percent. You want to make a play. It’s a funny-shaped ball. I love TQ, and he should never hang his head down. I mean, he scooped the ball up, it slipped out. He’s a defensive lineman; ball takes funny bounces sometimes.”
On his frustration with the possession with five minutes remaining that resulted in a three-and-out: “It’s a risky take, right? First-down run, second-down shot, and we didn’t do it. Third down, didn’t do it. They covered us. So that’s kind of how it happened. Yeah, obviously, you take a risk when you go for a shot, but the way they were up there, we thought it was worth the risk.”
On whether he feels there’s been a pattern with not being able to connect on deep passes over the past few games: “I mean, we’ve had some shots. That’s kind of the way it goes. Obviously, we’ll continue to look at timing, and sometimes when your timing, depending on the protection of where you’re setting up, if you gotta move a little bit, throw you off. Little dropbacks, but we had some big plays, and we’ll continue to work on it to get that corrected.”
On RB Cordarrelle Patterson’s performance: “Pretty good today. Glad CP is back.”
On splitting carries between the three running backs: “Can’t get into the strategy, but happy he’s back. We’ve got a lot of guys we believe in, and they can help us, and clearly CP helped us today in a lot of different roles.”
On an injury update for OL Matt Hennessy: “I don’t. He tried to go back in. I’ll go check, and obviously we have a quick turnaround. So, depending on what the doctor says, I’m sure they’ll have to do some imaging. Matt did try to go back in the game, and I appreciate him trying, but obviously he couldn’t do it, and I’ll just have to see what the doctors say.”
On whether there’s any concern about miscommunication between Mariota and TE Kyle Pitts: “No. It’s just something we gotta clean up. And we’ll work to execute better. But I believe in those guys, and we’ll continue to find ways to improve. Like I said, we got a lot of football. Obviously disappointed we didn’t get the job done today. Credit to the Chargers, but we gotta flip the page pretty quick – as soon as I leave here because it’s a short week.”
On whether the offense feeds on Patterson’s energy: “He certainly brings a physical element when the ball is in his hands. I mean, certainly we all saw that on the goal line. Then the reason I wanted him in there, kind of hockey sub there on the goal line when he ran it in. I mean, it’s a guy we believe in. He’s a veteran, hard to tackle, but we got other guys. (Tyler) Allgeier is hard to tackle, (Caleb) Huntley is hard to tackle, but happy he’s back, and we’ll continue to find ways to make sure we’re being effective down in the red zone and find unique ways to get him the ball as well.”
On whether the end of the last two games is a reflection of how thin the margins are in the NFL: “No. You look around the league, it’s so competitive, week in and week out. They usually come down to the end, and I think it’s kind of the trend around the National Football League, and certainly we’ve been in our fair share really the last two years but didn’t get it done today.”
For more content about the Atlanta Falcons
On Facebook at Atlanta Falcons News Now
On Instagram at DorlandoLed
Atlanta Falcons coverage on The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Bow Tie Chronicles
Atlanta Falcons 2022 schedule
Sept. 11: Saints 27, Falcons 26
Sept. 18: Rams 31, Falcons 27
Sept. 25 Falcons 27, Seahawks 23
Oct. 2 Falcons 23, Browns 20
Oct. 9 Buccaneers 21, Falcons 15
Oct. 16 Falcons 28, 49ers 14
Oct. 23 Bengals 35, Falcons 17
Oct. 30 Falcons 37, Panthers 34 OT
Nov. 6 Chargers 20, Falcons 17
Nov. 10 at Carolina, 8:15 p.m.
Nov. 20 vs. Chicago, 1 p.m.
Nov. 27 at Washington, 1 p.m.
Dec. 4 vs. Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.
BYE WEEK
Dec. 18 at New Orleans, TBD
Dec. 24 at Baltimore, 1 p.m.
Jan. 1 vs. Arizona, 1 p.m.
Jan. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, TBD
About the Author
