LONDON -- After falling behind 17-0, Falcons wide receiver Mack Hollins was not happy with quarterback Desmond Ridder.
He was seen on the broadcast snubbing Ridder who appeared to try to high-five Hollins after he underthrew a pass on a potential touchdown.
“I had an emotional moment, but not with Desmond,” Hollins said initially.
But when he was pressed about the incident he tried to explain.
“I put a lot of passion into this game,” said Hollins. “We have a lot of talent on offense, defense and special teams on this team. To play at a level that is not our standard is frustrating. I let that frustration out anytime that it comes to me.”
Hollins is a free spirit and considered one of the more eccentric players on the team. He doesn’t eat with utensils and walks around bare foot.
“It’s 2023 and that kind of stuff is looked at as out of control or overly emotional,” Hollins said. “I play the game because I love it.”
It’s not clear where Hollins and Ridder stand in their relationship as the Falcons’ offense has struggled over the past two games.
“I’ll compare it to family and if somebody was doing something wrong to your family and you spazzed out are you looked at as some weirdo now?” Hollins said. “Whatever people are going to write. I’m going to hold our team to a high standard. If that standard is not met, if that’s something I’ll do, that’s something I’ll do.”
Hollins is not sure how the Falcons can improve on offense.
“Fortunately, we (are) over with the first quarter of the season and we have some time to evaluate that,” Hollins said. “But it’s the NFL. It’s little things. It can go one way or it can go the other. It shows in the win and losses.”
The Falcons believe they have an explosive offensive, but they have not been able to hit passes down the field on a consistent basis to Hollins, wide receiver Drake London and tight end Kyle Pitts.
The Falcons have moved the ball with running back Bijan Robinson and tight end Jonnu Smith, who caught six passes for 95 yards against the Jaguars.
“We have to get it together so that we can help our defense and help this team,” Robinson said. “Play complimentary football because if we don’t, it’s going to end up in these results that we don’t want. I think we going to be good though (moving forward.) We just have to go out there next week and fire off as a team.”
Ridder was intercepted twice by the Jaguars, who also dropped another potential interception on the pass to Hollins.
“The first one, I’ve got to look at the tape,” Falcons coach Arthur Smith said. “They were popping out there in zone coverage. We were trying to throw one in there to Drake (London) I believe and a guy popped inside. Made a play on it. It’s a tough lesson to learn from. You evaluate that and you talk about it.”
The second interception happen with Jaguars safety Andre Cisco jumped a route in the middle of the field.
“There was a play earlier we thought we had Kyle (Pitts),” Smith said. “Don’t fault him for going to Drake. Came back to it. It was a different look. The picture is never going to look the same. We felt good about our options and Cisco came out of the middle of the field and jumped it, if I’m not mistaken.”
The two interceptions were back-breakers for the Falcons.
“Obviously, that happened back to back,” Smith said. “Thankfully the defense made a stand there. Now, you’re limited in your possessions. That’s what put us in the hole.”
The Falcons scored on their first possession of the second half, but could not sustain the offense.
“Thankfully, in the third quarter we were able to do something to jumpstart (the offense),” Smith said. “Again, you’re going to make life hard on yourself when you put yourself behind like that.”
Also, Ridder’s pass protection mush improve. The Falcons gave up two sacks and seven quarterback hits. The gave up seven sacks and eight hits in the 20-6 loss to the Lions in their previous game.
“I’m not quite sure right now postgame,” Falcons right guard Chris Lindstorm said. “Some of it’s going to be we’ll learn from on Monday. Just the mindset that I have coming out of this, just try and learn and have a growth mindset and really come in the next couple of days and learn.
“How can I be the best right guard for this team. This just the mindset going forward. You have to come out with great energy and doing your job.”
The Bow Tie Chronicles
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