Here’s what Washington coach Jay Gruden had to say about the Falcons in a conference call with the Atlanta media on Wednesday:
Q. What's behind the revival of running back Adrian Peterson?
A. His numbers kind of speak for themselves. His durability has been outstanding. I just can't say enough about what he brought to this football team from a production standpoint, from a leadership standpoint and confidence standpoint. He's brought a lot of this football team. We are grateful to have him.
Q. How does Ha Ha Clinton-Dix fit into the operation?
A. We just got him here this morning. We got him in here today. Anytime that you can add a Pro Bowl type player like Ha Ha you have to welcome him to your football team. Once we see him play and see how quickly he adapts to our football team. We are excited to get a guy like Ha Ha. Going against him the last couple of years, I know he's a great player. I know he can cover. He can play zone. Smart player. Good tackler. Good add for us.
Q. How are defensive tackles,Jonathan Allen, Da'ron Payne and Matt Ioannidis playing for the Redskins?
A. They are playing extremely well in both phases, in the running game and the passing game. They are making life easier for the safeties, middle linebackers and of course, our outside backers don't get enough credit whether if it's base or sub, they do a great job of setting the edge and forcing everything back to those big fellas. Those guys are getting off blocks and running They are rushing the passers. They are doing everything that we are asking of them of them now.
Q. What do you see from Matt Ryan and the Falcons offense?
A. Anytime you think of Matt Ryan, you think of explosive plays. They've got the weapons all across the board. Julio (Jones) and (Mohamed) Sanu and obviously the rookie (Calvin) Ridley is playing extremely well. (Tevin) Coleman is running the ball very well. They are very explosive. Matt is a great quarterback. A great competitor. Very good.
Q. In 2015, you selected Brandon Scherff a few picks ahead of Vic Beasley. What do you see from him?
A. I see him much improved really. I think his first year he was feeling his way a little bit. This year I think he's starting to get it. His get off is very good. He stresses the tackles out because he so fast. The tackles have to get out of their stance and get up and work on their protection. He does good with the tackle-end games and line stunts. He's a very explosive player. Fast. He's a very good pass rusher and then Grady Jarrett is doing a very good job up the middle. He's a good player. Brooks Reed has some good pass rush. That's what they do. They bring four guys very often. Occasionally, they'll bring five, but those four are pretty effective in rushing the quarterback.
Q. Is it hard to play an old school brand of football when everybody else is throwing it all over the field?
A. Yeah, sometimes, but not really. A lot depends on how the game is going. Fortunately, in our three-game winning streak we've gotten out to leads early and were able to stick with the plan. We were able to play field position. I could sense that our defense was playing well, so we weren't trying to force the issue too much despite playing pretty good quarterbacks in Cam (Newton) and (Dak) Prescott and Eli (Manning) last week with Odell (Beckham Jr.) Our defense continues to impress me. As long as we don't turn the ball over, our punter is punting the ball very well. I think he's close to leading the league in backed up punts. ... We are making teams go the whole distance of the field and we are playing good defense. Right now, that's working. If something happens and Atlanta jumps on us early and we have to throw the ball, I think we're more than capable of doing that. We just haven't had to the last couple of weeks.
Q. Has quarterback Alex Smith been the steadying force on offense?
A. He is still getting to know our guys. People have to know that he's getting to know Jordan Reed. He's getting to know Josh Doctson. We've had some injuries to other key players like Chris Thompson and Jamison Crowder. So, we've been throwing some other guys in there. We signed Michael Floyd late. Brian Quick has been in and out of here a little bit. He's still getting to the know the guys. He's a great deliverer of the football. A great game manager so to speak, that's what everybody says. We are going to demand a little bit more. We are going to have to get better in the passing game. Receivers have to play better. Tight ends have to play better and Alex, as he gets farther along in the system, I think he's going to be a lot better also.
Q. Will Clinton-Dix play this week?
A. We'll see. I know he's a bright guy. Just talking to him for the first time, I had him in here for a little while and I had a chance to talk to him. I could tell that he's a bright, bright person. I think he's going to pick it up well. ... It's just a matter of learning the terminology and how we do things.
Q. While you match Josh Norman on Julio Jones?
A. The one thing that has made us successful the last three weeks is that we played great team defense. We've not made it about any one individual. Josh has done everything that he's been asked to do. We asked him to travel a little bit with (Odell Beckham Jr.) last week and he did a great job. If we ask him to travel with Julio, I'm sure he'll be up to the challenge. He is one of the greatest competitors that I've been around. He loves the challenge of going against the best because he considers himself one of the best. If we ask him to travel, he'll travel. ... But, it's not like they don't have another weapon over there on the other side. Ridley is playing extremely well and (Sanu) is in the slot. They have three great weapons. Whoever he's on, he's going to have to buckle up, step up his game, which I know he will.
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