CHARLOTTE -- Here’s what Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder had to say after the 9-7 loss to the Panthers on Sunday:
Q. What happened out there on that interception?
DESMOND RIDDER: Yeah, I mean, that’s just, I got around the edge, was able to make the guy miss. You know, I think it was second down there. We’ve got to be able to just throw the ball away. Live to see another down.
Q. It feels like a conversation we’ve had all year long in terms of some of those decisions.
DESMOND RIDDER: Yeah, like I said, I just got to be able to -- we’re all playmakers. We all got to try and make plays out there. Have to know the right time, the right situation. That wasn’t it. That was one where we could have -- either I just run it out of bounds or threw it out of bounds or over someone’s head to live to see another down.
Q. What did you see there? What was the play you were trying to make? It was hard to see from the replay.
DESMOND RIDDER: Yeah, trying to get it back inside. Like I said, you know, any time you throw it late over the middle, it’s probably not a good idea. Trying to make a play. Trying to do too much.
Q. You guys were in control of your fate going into this game and now you’re not. How tough does it make it to have to win out all of the games and get help?
DESMOND RIDDER: Yeah, I mean, it’s tough. But we have to get up and go back to work the next day. The world isn’t going to stop. Everyone is going to keep going and we’ve got to be able to get up, come back and learn from it and finish the season strong, no matter how it ends.
Q. Do you feel like the offense was too conservative today?
DESMOND RIDDER: No. We knew it was going to be a crappy game. We knew that the weather was going to be bad. We knew that we were going to have to rely on those front five up front to be able to kind of lead the way and the charge. We knew it wasn’t going to be a 500-yard passing or 400-yard passing game. We knew it was going to be kept on the ground.
Like I said, at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter what it is, we’ve got to be able to go out there and execute.
Q. Obviously, this is a league of any given Sunday. Them being 1-12, what was your perception of them? Obviously, they were a division rival, you played them the first game of the year.
DESMOND RIDDER: Yeah, like I said and said all week, in this league, records don’t matter. You know we talk about pride and you talk about the joy of wanting to play. Those guys, obviously, want to play football.
It doesn’t matter what their record is. They’re still coming out here every single Sunday to put their best foot forward. So we knew that we were going to get their best shot. And we, obviously, didn’t come out here and play the way we wanted to.
Q. What’s this team’s confidence level?
DESMOND RIDDER: Yeah, I mean, Coach (Smith) is a great coach. You know, we’re all with Coach Art (Arthur Smith). You know, he puts us in the best position to be able to go out there. Like I said, at the end of the day he can call the play or whatever it is, but it’s up to us to be able to go out there and execute. So we’ve got to go out there and be able to go out there and execute and be better.
Q. Why has this team had the same issues it seems like all season long? Offensively and defensively, in losses, it’s been the same thing.
DESMOND RIDDER: Just got to be able to find a way.
Q. Given where you are in the playoff hunt at this point, do you have to change your mindset going down the stretch in terms of what’s realistic to accomplish and how you approach things because of that?
DESMOND RIDDER: No, I wouldn’t say that. Our mindset every single week is to, obviously, go out there on Sunday and win. It doesn’t matter our opponent, it doesn’t matter the record. We want to go out there and win.
So for these next couple of weeks, however many it is, you know, we obviously want to go out there and finish every game and finish every game strong and be able to come out there with a win.
Like we said earlier, at this point, obviously, it’s out of our hands. The only thing we can control is how hard we work, how hard we come back, and be able to come out there and execute on Sundays.
Q. How do you feel like you’ve performed in these 16 chances for yourself?
DESMOND RIDDER: Yeah, I mean, I felt like there was times where it’s great and times where it’s not great. You know, you just got to eliminate those non-great times. You know, if you go out there and be able to take care of the ball, be able to move and put points on the board, you’re doing pretty well.
You know, for myself, I’ve felt like I’ve done that at times. And at times, I haven’t. At times, I’ve put myself in a bad position not only for myself, but for the team, as well. And so, like I said, got to be able to go out there and be better and be able to execute.
Q. Why do you think that the highs are really high and the lows are really low?
DESMOND RIDDER: I mean, that’s literally within the same question you just asked. It’s the whole team. You know, why everyone is up and down and what it is. Like I said, at the end of the day, we just got to find a way to be consistent, not have those ups and downs and be able to go out there and win. When we do that, I think we’ll be a great team.
Q. Yeah, what would be the key trying to move forward here with three games left and the race being what it is?
DESMOND RIDDER: Yeah, I mean, at the end of the day, like I just said, Carolina was one and whatever and, you know, they got a win and it doesn’t matter what our record is. It’s not like we’re going to go out there like Oh, we’re out of it or whatever it may be. We’re going to go out there and put our best foot forward on every single play and be able to go out there and get a win.
The Bow Tie Chronicles
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