INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Here’s what Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota had to say after the 31-27 loss to the Rams on Sunday:
On what going for a scoring drive in the last seconds says about the team: “At the end of the day, we got a great group of guys that have a lot of fight, that have the mentality just to continue to take it one play at a time. This league is weird, man. You’re (going to) find yourself in these close games. We just have to do a better job of finding ways to win them.”
On the number of targets for tight end Kyle Pitts: “Yeah, week in and week out, it’s going to depend. They did a good job. There (were) a couple moments where they were doubling him. There was a couple moments … just the way that the game flows where he’s going to get his targets, he’s going to find the ball, the ball will come to him. These first couple weeks, it just hasn’t happened that way.”
On wide receiver Drake London and wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge’s impact on the passing game: “They both are great. That room has been awesome. Drake, he’s (going to) continue to learn, he’s (going to) continue to grow. He’s done a great job for us, and that being said, we got to continue to find ways to spread the ball around because I think we’ve got a great group.”
On what the team will take away from an 0-2 starting record and how they’ll build on that for next week’s game in Seattle: “When it comes down to it, at the end of the day, we just (have) to focus on … it’s a play here, it’s a play there. It’s just kind of what happens in this league. With that being said, I think it’s good for us to stay out here, be on the West Coast, being all together. It’s what it’s about. We’ll find ways to all improve. We’ll all continue to get better. But to be out here together, I think is (going to) be great for us.”
On coach Arthur Smith’s address to the team to set the theme for the rest of the road trip: “I think just flush it, and we can take the good and the bad. Don’t be afraid to look at yourself critically and get better from it. At the end of the day, if we can just stack these days and put four quarters together, I think we will be a good team.”
On how the running game slowed down compared with last week: “I think they did a good job of changing some looks. I (have) to do a better job of getting us in better plays. But that being said, they get paid to play defense, too, and they did a good job. We’ll correct some things, but at the end of the day, we hang our hat on what we do up front, and I continue to believe in those guys and in what we’re doing.”
On a missed protection on the first drive: “That’s on me. I got to do a better job of communicating that across the board. I think throughout the game, I could have done a better job operationally and just communicating with the guys so that everybody was on the same page.”
On what he said to London after his first NFL touchdown: “To keep it. That’s a big thing. There’s only so many guys that get to play this game and to catch your first one, I think it’s important to have it. It’s such a milestone, right? You work your whole life to get to this point. I can remember when I threw my first touchdown, one of the veteran guys picked up the ball for me, and I just thought about that in that moment for a young rookie, just to kind of have a milestone so that he can look back on it and just find that opportunity to reflect. I thought it was important.”
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The Bow Tie Chronicles
Atlanta Falcons 2022 NFL schedule
Sept. 11: Saints 27, Falcons 26
Sept. 18: Rams 31, Falcons 27
Sept. 25 at Seattle, 4:25 p.m.
Oct. 2 vs. Cleveland, 1 p.m.
Oct. 9 at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m.
Oct. 16 vs. San Francisco, 1 p.m.
Oct. 23 at Cincinnati, 1 p.m.
Oct. 30 vs. Carolina, 1 p.m.
Nov. 6 vs. Los Angeles Chargers, 1 p.m.
Nov. 10 at Carolina, 8:15 p.m.
Nov. 20 vs. Chicago, 1 p.m.
Nov. 27 at Washington, 1 p.m.
Dec. 4 vs. Pittsburgh, 1 p.m.
BYE WEEK
Dec. 18 at New Orleans, TBD
Dec. 24 at Baltimore, 1 p.m.
Jan. 1 vs. Arizona, 1 p.m.
Jan. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, TBD
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