Linebacker Brooks Reed was on the field Sunday during Tampa Bay quarterback Jameis Winston’s notable fumble recovery and 20-yard scramble for a first down that led to the Buccaneers’ game-winning drive.
After the disappointing “fluke” of a play, Reed said he knows the importance of stopping the run when the Falcons go against the unbeaten Panthers at 1 p.m. Sunday at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.
“It would have been a totally different ballgame if we would have got him down, but you live and learn and you hope nothing like that happens ever again,” Reed said. “Everyone was surprised after they saw (Winston) still running. Usually when you have two linebackers tackling a quarterback, you expect him to go down.”
After four seasons with the Texans, Reed signed a five-year, $22 million contract with the Falcons on March 10.
Reed, who made his Falcons debut against the Texans on Oct. 10, recognizes the talent of the Panthers and the challenge the Falcons must overcome to earn a spot in the playoffs.
“They play tough on defense, tough on offense, tough on special teams,” Reed said. “We’re pretty tough, too. We just have to be at our best playing these guys. They know that we’re going to give them our best shot. We just have to go out there and execute the game plan.”
Missing the first three games this season because of groin surgery in September, Reed is struggling to break out on the field the way he did with the Texans, where he racked him up 211 total tackles and 14.5 sacks in four seasons.
Reed said his struggles aren’t because of complications from his groin surgery or from learning a new defensive scheme. He found a similar style of play with Houston to helping him pick up the Falcons’ defensive scheme quickly.
“I think I’m fitting in well,” Reed said. “This program’s all about running around, not being hesitant and making plays.”
In the first nine games last season with the Texans, Reed had 13 tackles and one sack. So far in his first season with the Falcons (6-6), Reed has seven tackles.
Reed said he hopes this weekend against the Panthers to push harder and play the way he knows he’s capable of against Panthers the run game.
“I’m doing OK. I’m getting close,” Reed said. “Getting sacks, half of it’s effort, and the other half is technique and being in the right place at the right time. I think once I string a couple together, the rest will come.”
Defensive coordinator Richard Smith was not pleased with the tackling displayed against the Buccaneers, calling it the “worst” display he’s seen all season. This week, Smith re-emphasized the need to stop the run and quarterback Cam Newton to avoid another game-altering play against the Panthers (12-0).
“You’re up all night preparing for them, and that’s why they’re so good,” Smith said. “When you go back and look at their games and all they do, it’s not like they’re one-dimensional. They’ll get you both ways (rushing and passing), and they do all sorts of personnel packages.”
Facing the NFL’s third-ranked rushing offense, the Falcons face the challenge of trying to control the Panthers’ powerful run game along with a mobile quarterback in Newton, who alone is responsible for 476 yards of the Panthers’ 1720 rushing yards this season.
During the special-teams period of practice Friday, Falcons’ coaches were seen running zone-read with some of the defensive line including linebacker Adrian Clayborn, defensive end Tyson Jackson and defensive tackle Ra’Shede Hageman. Posing as the Panthers, Raheem Morris played the role of Cam Newton and coach Terry Robiskie served as Jonathan Stewart in the backfield.
Coach Dan Quinn said the time was used to give some attention and extra practice for the defensive line.
“We had a couple of guys we wanted to work on specifics, short yardage and red-zone stuff with them. We all (the coaching staff) lend a hand. I wouldn’t say the speed is accurate, but the look is there,” Quinn said. “(Morris being Cam) was a hard stretch, for sure.”
Using his previous experience coaching against the Panthers, Quinn knows the challenge the Panthers’ run game and Newton pose.
“I think their style (this season) is similar in terms of what they’ve been doing the past few years, but the execution and the way they’re playing that’s what setting them apart,” Quinn said.
