The Falcons made some splash moves throughout the offseason.
Late in training camp, they traded for outside linebacker Matthew Judon and then signed safety Justin Simmons in free agency.
Both started and played key roles on the defense in the 18-10 loss to the Steelers on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“Very hard to judge those guys,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said. “I did see the big plays that we all clearly saw. Justin Simmons making a big knock-down pass I believe in the third down. I believe Matthew Judon was a part of the sack, if not having the whole sack.”
Judon finished with five tackles, half of a sack and one quarterback hit.
Simmons had three tackles and one pass breakup.
“Later in that second half and how (Judon) was able to play, I watched him set a couple of edges, play really well and do a couple of really good things,” Morris said. “There’s a bunch of positive aspects. Obviously as a coach, that’s what we see.”
Morris will have more after he watches the film.
“You can’t ride the emotional roller coaster, whether you want to be positive about Judon or positive about Justin,” Morris said. “We’ve got to have reality checks for ourselves to be able to go out there and correct it.”
Despite the loss, Simmons felt things well.
“It felt good,” Simmons said. “Obviously, it was not the result that you want. It’s part of the process, now (it’s a) 16-game season. This is game one. There was some good, obviously some bad. Just like if we’d won it, watch the tape, come back for next week.”
Simmons started alongside safety Jessie Bates III.
“We’ve been in preparation up to this game, the secondary in general,” Simmons said. “The coaching staff did a good job of acclimating me, catching me up. It felt like home playing out there and playing with the guys.”
Judon felt that the defense played well in keeping the Steelers out of the end zone and forcing six field goals.
“We came out and we were physical,” Judon said. “I don’t think they out-physicaled us. They had some scheme runs that kind of hit. We were physical and we all ran to the ball.”
Judon like the hustling spirit that the unit displayed in their first time play live tackle football together. They did not play in the exhibition season and just tap or thud players in practice as simulated tackles in the name of player safety and injury prevention.
“When you don’t play in the (exhibition) season, that’s what you worry about and that is what you struggle with, but we did a pretty good job,” Judon said. “Then if somebody shot their shot, everybody else was following. That’s what we must continue to do. That’s what we have to build upon.”
Steelers quarterback Justin Fields put together enough plays to hurt the Falcons.
“He’s a mobile quarterback,” Judon said. “Justin Fields is probably one of the fastest quarterbacks in the league. What he lacks with his arm, which I don’t think he’s lacking in arm-talent, he excels with his feet. It’s difficult just to stop him. When we are rushing him, you know our rush lanes have to stay proper …if he’s got a big gap, he’s gone.”
Fields rushed 14 times for 57 yards with a long run of 12 yards.
Fields completed 17 of 23 passes for 156 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. He finished with a passer rating of 91.9.
The defensive unit has plenty to work on. He didn’t like the Steelers, under offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, rushed for 137 yards on 41 carries.
“There is stuff that we’ve got to build upon,” Judon said. “There is stuff that we’ve got to do better. As far as our performance, we have to keep them under 100 rush yards. That has to be something that we can hang our hats on and make them one-dimensional. Make them have to pass.”
Defensive Grady Jarrett returned after most of last season with a knee injury. He liked the new additions on defense.
“It was awesome to have Judon as a part of the squad,” Jarrett said. “I think he’s just warming up. I think he’s going to have an awesome season for us.”
For a first outing under new defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake, Jarrett also felt that they had a respectable showing.
“I think we did well,” Jarrett said. “There’s some room for improvement, for sure. That’s the exciting part. I couldn’t be any more prouder of the guys. I just know that we have so much more football ahead of us.”
Jarrett, like Judon, had a few key takeaways.
“We played with great effort,” Jarrett said. “We communicated well most of the time and we responded to challenging circumstances. We stood up when the odds were against us…. there is a lot of fight left in us. This is just the first game.”
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