Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan hopes to rebound from one of the more porous showings of his career. He tossed four interceptions and had the fourth-lowest passer rating of his career (47.2) against Arizona last week.
The Falcons lost their previous meeting with the Panthers 30-20.
Here’s a brief Q&A involving Ryan and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s D. Orlando Ledbetter.
Q: Do you regret telling the Panthers to “get the (expletive) off our field” after beating them last season at Georgia Dome?
A: It's an emotional game. It's a game where a lot goes on. It just happens. That's part of the game. It happens. They certainly got after us (in) the second game when we went up there. It happens every week. You just have to go out there and play your best.
Q: How are their new safeties Quintin Mikell and Mike Mitchell playing?
A: When Mikell comes in, he's an (in the) box safety. He does a great job in the run game. When he comes down, he's extremely physical. They've changed their safeties since we played against them. They've got some talented guys. Their secondary is doing a really good job.
Q: What’s your assessment of defensive ends Charles Johnson and Greg Hardy?
A: They are both really good players. They both certainly are game-changers. Both of them are solid against the run and are really good pass rushers. Down-in and down-out, those guys are ready to play. They feed off each other well, too. You have to do a great job with your protection schemes and try to get doubles on both of those guys. Because they move them around, that's not easy to do.
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