FLOWERY BRANCH — Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera, who's guided his team to three straight NFC South titles, addressed the Atlanta media on Wednesday.
The Panthers (12-0) host the Falcons (6-6) at 1 p.m. Sunday at Bank of America Stadium.
Here’s what Rivera had to say:
Q: What has led to the 12-0 start to the season?
A: I think things have fallen into place. We've done some good things obviously. I think a lot has to do with the play of our quarterback and the play of our team. But I think the development of our quarterback is one of the biggest things.
Q: Did making the playoffs last season help with his development?
A: It was big. To do what we did last year was the culmination of just the hard work that the guys have put in. The belief they put in themselves to be able to put it all together and go on that run. We had to win four games in a row. Every game we played was a playoff atmosphere for us. I think that really helped our confidence. I think it really helped our quarterback's confidence. I think that was one of the big things. If you go back and look at how we did it and how he played down that stretch, if anything that really helped push him in the direction that we needed him going."
Q: How has Newton’s relationship with tight end Greg Olsen blossomed even more this year?
A: While I think the big thing obviously was losing Kelvin Benjamin like we did early on, he relied a little bit more on Greg. But I think as the year has gone one he's been able to spread the ball not to just Greg, but to different receivers… you look at what Greg has accomplished and it's been outstanding. Every year he's done something really good for us. But you have to take a look at the other guys who have really stepped up and probably one of the guys who's done a great job for us has been (Jerricho) Cotchery. Jerricho has just been a solid veteran guy who seems to the plays when we need them. The rest of the guys have developed into a nice receiving group.
Q: How’s the play of Ted Ginn helped?
A: The one thing about Teddy is that he's got the explosive speed over the top that really make people respect and kind of hold their depth. By doing that, it opens up things underneath for the other guys. If you are not respecting Teddy's speed, he'll go by you.
Q: How’s Luke Kuechly playing for you on defense?
A: I think as a group our defensive unit is playing very well. I think obviously with Luke in the leadership role, it has been very good for us. I think that he has really continued to grow as that middle linebacker for us. I think again, there are a whole bunch of guys that are playing very well for us right now. We just have to continue to focus in on getting better each week.
Q: What is your assessment of the matchup between Josh Norman and Julio Jones?
A: It's like any great athlete that's going to compete against another great athlete. They really like to play against guys like that. They really feel that guys like Julio bring out the best in other players. Julio is one of the finer receivers in this league. He's having a great year again this year. I know that Josh loves challenges and he's looked at Julio as probably the ultimate challenge in the league right now. Josh is going to do his best to compete and try and have success against Julio.
Q: Are you cool with him being boastful?
A: Josh is one of those guys that the more you get to know him and understand him, you really do appreciate what he's doing and how he does it. He has his own flair. His own personality. That's one of the things that I don't want to do is take away personality. I think guys feed off of their own energy and others feed off of that energy as well. With him, there is that fine line. I try to make sure that he stays as close to that fine line as possible without crossing it.
Q: What do you see on film of Matt Ryan?
A: As I watch him, I still feel like he's still learning and developing in this offense. He's putting such good numbers up, but I think he's still getting a good feel for it. Last year, he mastered Dirk Koetter's (offense) and now he still has a lot to learn and he's still growing. He has a great arm and is a good decision maker. He's a guy as he continues to get more and more comfortable, you're going to see him play better and better.
Q: How is defensive end Charles Johnson recovering from his hamstring injury?
A: It's good to have him back and being in form. He did a nice job for us and put some pressure on the quarterback. He almost got a sack fumble, but the quarterback was able to get his arm free. He's really worked himself back into that playing shape that you hoped he would be in. Unfortunately, we missed him for those eight weeks, but having him ready to roll has been a boost for our defense.
Q: How’s Kawann Short and the interior of the defense playing for you?
A: K.K. has been playing very solid football for us. He's doing a lot of good things and it shows. We have gotten a good push from our defensive tackles and they are playing good run defense. That's one of the things we try and stress here is playing good run defense. If you can use that, take the running game away, it makes things a little more easier as far as playing the play-action. We've got a tall task ahead of us. They are running the ball very well. Devonta Freeman is a solid young football player who seems to just get better and better every time that he gets on the field.
Q: Do you plan to play out the season or rest guys after you get the No. 1 seed?
A: We're going to play our guys as necessary. This week, we still have a lot of things to accomplish. We're playing it to win. That's the thing that we have to do. That has to be our attitude and our mental approach is really to play to win. We are going to play things the way they need to be played.
