FLOWERY BRANCH — In the closing moments of the tough loss last Sunday night to the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs, Falcons safety Justin Simmons went to chat with quarterback Kirk Cousins, who took the defeat hard.
“Yeah, I appreciate him,” Cousins said.
Simmons was telling Cousins how he feels good about this team, and he believes the future is bright.
The Falcons (1-2) must continue to make progress, especially on offense, when they face the Saints (2-1) in an NFC South game at 1 p.m. Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Simmons and safety Jessie Bates III have helped the defense get off to a good start, even though they still are trying to ramp up the pass rush. The Falcons’ three sacks rank 31st of 32 teams in the NFL.
“I appreciate Jessie,” Cousins said. “Certainly their experience, the pros that they are, the players they are, the way they’ve been playing this year. I just value their perspective.”
In Week 1, the defense held the Steelers out of the end zone. In Week 3, it forced a late field goal by the Eagles that allowed the offense to win the game on a last-minute touchdown. Then against the Chiefs, the defense got stops that allowed the Falcons two potential game-winning drives. Both stalled on downs.
“I just think our defense has been playing winning football,” Cousins said. “That’s encouraging, going back to being glass half full. When you see the way our defense is playing, you say, ‘Hey, that’s going to give us a shot here,’ as we move forward.”
The defense will get tested by the Saints, who scored 47 and 44 points in their first two games before the Eagles held them to 12 last week.
“I think you do need to have strong defensive play to have a chance,” Cousins said. “I’ve been a part of some teams where you had really good offense, but when the defense was struggling, it was hard to win. So, when you can play complementary football, it is where you can really take off.”
Now, if the offense can get moving. The Falcons have been a disjointed operation over the first three games.
They’ve struggled on first downs, which has led to struggles on third downs. They are only 6-of-27 on third downs, but 10 of the third-down situations have been for 9 yards or more. They are 0-of-10 in those situations.
Cousins believes they are making strides.
“I came off the field feeling like, (wide receiver Darnell) Mooney and I had a little more of a connection than we had maybe in the first game of the year,” Cousins said. “(Wide receiver) Drake (London) as well. Getting (tight end) Kyle (Pitts) going on that big corner route for a big gain.
“I just think the more we can put that on tape, have those shared experiences, I think it will build confidence, anticipation, trust, all those things you want to have with your receivers.”
Also, the Falcons are learning exactly what offensive coordinator Zac Robinson wants in live games. It seems that some of this could have been worked out in the exhibition games, but the Falcons elected – mostly for health reasons – not to play the starters in those games.
“Then the same, too, from a coach standpoint, game-planning standpoint, just knowing what he wants, what he’s looking for,” Cousins said. “You know, hey, when I get this pressure, he wants the ball to go here. Just the more we stack up time together, the more you kind of can finish each other’s sentences.”
Robinson believes the offense is making progress.
“So, we’re continuing to build chemistry as an offense as well,” Robinson said. “These guys are getting a feel for each other. We’ve had a ton of reps banked from the offseason and training camp, but the games are naturally just a little bit different.”
The Falcons are working on some of the basics still.
“So, feeling what guy’s game-day demeanors, like all those different things that go into it, I think these guys just continue to get more comfortable with each other,” Robinson said. “Continue to build on that execution that we’re looking for.”
Pitts, who had the big 50-yarder against the Chiefs, has only 12 targets, according to Pro Football Reference.com’s advanced stats. Running back Bijan Robinson has 12, wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud has 15, Mooney has 18 and London has 19.
“Coverage can dictate so many different things, of where the football goes,” Zac Robinson said. “Of course, you’re wanting to get the ball in his hands. I thought that was a huge play (against the Chiefs) that obviously got us going when he caught that and got down to the 1 there before we scored.”
The Falcons plan to continue to get Pitts the ball in the flow of the game.
“So, he’s doing a great job,” Robinson said. “He played really fast the other night. I think the more that he can be detail-oriented, play as fast as he did, the ball’s naturally just going to find him.”
Bijan Robinson picked up a blitzer on the 50-yarder to Pitts.
“I told Bijan, thank you,” Pitts said.
Also, the Falcons will try to improve on offense while backup center Ryan Neuzil starts for Drew Dalman, who is on injured reserve with a high left ankle sprain.
“He’s awesome,” Neuzil said of Cousins. “Very concise and to the point in the huddle. We have great coaches in there. We are all getting the game plan through the week, so we all know what is going on, going into it. It doesn’t change this week.”
When Cousins played for the Vikings, the big rival was the Green Bay Packers. When he was with Washington, it was the Dallas Cowboys.
With family in Georgia, he’s well aware of the Falcons-Saints rivalry.
“Yeah, I definitely got it,” Cousins said. “I got it from a lot of fans in town. They made it clear going back to, if I would be out in public in April, May. I mean, they made it clear.”
He enjoyed the case study in local fandom.
“They take the ‘S’ off of the (Saints) team name,” Cousins said. “So, it’s a big deal. So, we want to deliver for our fans. I thought they brought a great environment on Sunday night. There was great energy. I want to see that continue throughout the season.”
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