The communications on defense against the Bengals was so bad that Falcons coach Dan Quinn ordered the team's DJ to lower the sound of the music at practice.
The Falcons (1-3) are set to face the Steelers (1-2-1) at 1 p.m. Sunday at Heinz Field.
Two players were playing different coverages when the Bengals scored touchdowns by Tyler Eifert and John Ross in the 37-36 loss to Cincinnati on Sunday.
“On both occasions, that was Falcons beating Falcons,” Quinn said. “So, that is as difficult as it gets. You generally haven’t seen a lot of that from us where we bust a coverage and miscommunicate to cause an explosive play.”
With safety Ricardo Allen out, the secondary struggled. He was the main signal-caller for the back end of the defense.
The Falcons calls are relayed from the coaches to the players and then is spread around the defense individually. Linebacker De’Vondre Campbell has the green dot helmet and has sideline communications with the coaches.
“We had our DJ turn the music down some this week in practice so that we can clearly hear some of our communications,” Quinn said. “It was more of an emphasis for us in every single spot that we could look for it, hear it and acknowledge it.
“It starts in the classroom from player to player. Then from a coaching side, I wanted the coaches to the side. I want to hear the players talk.”
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