It was painstaking, but quarterback Matt Ryan went into detail about of his interceptions that helped to derail the Falcons in a 20-10 loss to the Vikings on Sunday.
Ryan has now thrown 12 interceptions this season and has had five games with multiple interceptions. That ties a career-high that was set during the 2009 season.
In the second quarter with the Falcons trailing 7-3 and on the move, Ryan was intercepted by Minnesota’s Captain Munnerlyn. The pass was intended for wide receiver Nick Williams.
“I was a little late on the throw and it was the wrong place to go with the ball,” Ryan said. “I’ve got to go to a different spot. With that being said, it was a little too late to go Nick. I saw it too late.”
With the defense playing strong and the Falcons still within striking distance, Ryan’s second interception took the air out of the building and led to him being booed.
Ryan escaped the pocket to dodge the blitz and tossed an ill-advised pass for tight end Jacob Tamme. Minnesota cornerback Terence Newman made an easy interception.
“I think the second one, frankly I was trying to make a play that wasn’t there,” Ryan said. “Trying to get us in the end zone when there really wasn’t an opportunity to get us in the end zone.
“As a competitor, you want to make those plays to get everybody going and to get the ball into the end zone that wasn’t the situation to do it. I’m a better player to know when it’s time to ditch it and throw it away.”
Ryan had some room to run and slide, but elected attempt the pass.
Minnesota Vikings coach Mike Zimmer had some kind words for Ryan after the game.
“I know that people are upset with Matt Ryan about his turnovers, but Matt Ryan is a great player, too,” Zimmer said. “He’s a class kid and a great player.”
Ryan knows that the offense needs to get rolling soon.
“We did have opportunities in the red area and turned it over,” Ryan said. “It starts with me. I’ve got to be better in terms of decision making and knowing when to throw the ball away and cut our losses and kick the field goal.”
It’s time for the Falcons to start figuring things out offensively.
“We’ve got to really look in the mirror hard before we get out on to the practice field Wednesday and see what we can do differently to stop that from happening,” Ryan said. “I know for me it starts with making great decisions and I didn’t do a good job of that.”
Ryan believes the Falcons are beating themselves.
“Teams are too good in this league to give them opportunities to stay in games and beat you,” Ryan said. “I feel like there have been a lot of times this year we’ve had some self-inflicted wounds.
“It is always more difficult when you feel like you do it to yourself. I feel like we’ve done that and I’ve done that the last couple of weeks.”
Ryan believes the offense can recapture the magic it displayed earlier in the season, while jumping out to a 5-0 mark.
“I know that there’s an offense that’s played this year, that has played at a really high level,” Ryan said. “We can get back to that.”
Tight end Tony Moeaki’s clipping penalty on running back Tevin Coleman’s apparent 1-yard touchdown run was costly. Instead of going up 10-7, the Falcons ended up scoring no points because of Ryan’s second interception.
“You never know how things are going to shake out, but anytime you put the ball in the end zone, you’re going to have a chance,” Ryan said. “We got another penalty, a hands to the face. Even when that happened, we had opportunities that we didn’t convert on.”
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