FLOWERY BRANCH — Here’s what Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota had to say about the Bears, his team’s opponent at 1 p.m. Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

On what he sees in the Bears defense since they traded Robert Quinn and Roquan Smith: “It is young. My former teammate (with the Raiders) Nick Morrow is playing linebacker there. He’s been playing great, I think, from the tape that I watched. Obviously, (safety) Eddie Jackson’s been performing well. He’s been a guy that’s been doing that for a long time. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson has also played well.”

On whether the offense plans to lean more on the rushing attack: “Yeah, we’ll have to see. They say that a run game travels, right? As it gets later on in a year, it’s helpful, but at the same time, we have to make plays in the passing game.”

On Bears LB Jack Sanborn’s performance since the Smith trade: “He’s come in, and he’s played well. Scheme-wise, they do a lot of different things with movements. They create problems for guys up front. He’s created a lot of tackles just because of how they scheme things up.”

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Atlanta Falcons 2022 schedule

Sept. 11: Saints 27, Falcons 26

Sept. 18: Rams 31, Falcons 27

Sept. 25 Falcons 27, Seahawks 23

Oct. 2 Falcons 23, Browns 20

Oct. 9 Buccaneers 21, Falcons 15

Oct. 16 Falcons 28, 49ers 14

Oct. 23 Bengals 35, Falcons 17

Oct. 30 Falcons 37, Panthers 34 OT

Nov. 6 Chargers 20, Falcons 17

Nov. 10 Panthers 25, Falcons 15

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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