Harmon on Falcons’ defense: ‘We didn’t do what we needed to do to win’

“Well anytime that you lose, you are not excited, and especially when there were opportunities out there where we know that we could have played better. We could have executed better. This is the reality of it. We have to learn from this game. Look at the corrections and get back in the winning column. You never know what can happen, weird things happen at the end of the season but we have to control what we can control and that is winning the game that we have next. We have a Detroit team that beat a good team today and they are going to be ready to go on next Sunday but we have to play better.”

Defensively, San Francisco 49ers RB Jeff Wilson Jr. got going, San Francisco 49ers TE George Kittle got going and San Francisco 49ers WR Deebo Samuel. How did you guys try to defend those three?

“Well if you look at it, we didn’t really defend them much. They out executed us. When those guys got the ball in their hands they made plays and we didn’t. It sucks because we knew what they were going to try to do, run the ball and get 19 and 85 the ball in space. We didn’t do what we needed to do to win. That is what you have to do. You have to execute at this point of the season. The 49ers out-executed us and we have to tip our hats to them because they played the game the way they wanted to play the game and that is why they won today.”

How do you move on from an outing like this?

“We have to look at the opportunity that we have ahead. We have a Detroit Lions team that is coming in, that plays everybody tough. They play hard. We just have to focus on what we have to focus on. That is winning the next game. We don’t know what will happen. The only thing that we can do is control what we can control and that is who we play next.”

You guys felt like you were improving all season long. ls today a step back or a one off and things are still moving in the right direction?

“I feel like things are still moving in the right direction but it stings. Every time that you put everything that you have into it, you feel confident about the game plan, going out there competing with the players, and your teammates but today wasn’t our day. As much as we wanted it to be our day, it wasn’t. We have to be truthful with ourselves when we look at the film and learn from the film. We have to remember this feeling so that we can continue to try to move in the right direction.”

FOYE OLUOKUN, LINEBACKER

How do you guys try to move forward after today?

“The way we’ve moved forward before, where we go back to the drawing board for the next team and try to play cleaner football.”

How tough was the challenge today against the 49ers?

“They may have posed different challenges, kind of getting you to give you one look they’ve shown for weeks and then play kind of something off of it. End of the day, you’ve got to learn exactly what you’re doing, no matter what situation or whatever formation, and play cleaner football.”

You have a long flight home. What are you going to stew on the most?

“Oh just, a couple plays I wish I had back, but at the end of the day I’m a football player, so I’m replaying the game in my head already. Get onto the next week. More football to be played.”

Math people are saying the playoff chances are really small now after today. How do you all try to, you know--?

“I mean, if there’s a chance, there’s a chance. I don’t really care how small they are. If there’s a chance, you might say they’re improbable, I say there’s a chance. So, we’re going to keep fighting and make sure that we do our part in order to try to make the playoffs here.”

RUSSELL GAGE, WIDE RECEIVER

How tough is it for you guys dealing with not being able to score in the red zone today?

“For us, it always comes down to execution. We had a lot of opportunities. To start the game off, we have to capitalize there. We understand that we know things that we can do. There are a lot of things that we can do better, finishing drives, we moved the ball on teams often, we just have to find a way to finish these drives. To execute will ultimately determine a lot for us.”

In executing will that provide a boost for the offense?

“For sure. It goes hand in hand. It is complimentary football. When you are able to cap drives off with touchdowns, not just field goals, but touchdowns, we know that definitely goes a long way.”

You guys are down to a two-percent chance at making the playoffs, how do you fight on knowing that is the case?

“We know that nothing is set in stone right now. We know that we have three games that we can win out. Anything can happen. This season has already been crazy as we have seen. Nothing is set in stone. We are going to go out and find a way to win these last three.”

What was the problem in the red zone? Was it communication? Was it the crowd noise? What was it? “I think honestly it was a combination of all of it. We have to settle down. We have to understand that we have plays that are implemented and we have to find ways to execute them. At the end of the day, it is a combination of everything. We are playing on one accord and we do a good job of getting down there, we just have to understand that things happen faster in the red zone. Sometimes we may have to pick up the tempo. It’s a number of things; you can’t put your finger on one thing exactly. We just have to find a way.”

The Bow Tie Chronicles