Here’s what Falcons coach Dan Quinn had to say before practice on Wednesday:
Opening statement. "Fast turn around. We are pumped to get back… the biggest thing for us is right back in the division and that matchup, we knew at this part of the season there was going to be a bunch of division games coming. We are pumped to be back here at home with our crowd to get rolling. We've worked in some areas over the last few weeks and we'll continue to do that: that's our third downs and our red zone. We see some improvement in those areas. We're going to keep working those areas even as we get through the week. Where in the past, some of those portions of our situation football came up have been toward the end of the week. Now, we are moving them to the beginning of the week. It will be a great environment come Sunday and we can't wait to feed off the fans energy. We'll bring the juice as well. For us, injury wise Matt Bosher won't go today. Devonta Freeman is still in the concussion protocol. We'll hold Ty Sambrailo (hamstring) out as well. Past that, we're ready to get rolling. We look forward to (playing) against Tampa."
On the release of Jalen Collins. "We made the best decision for the team. We went through the whole process. We wanted to make sure that we took all the time that we needed. Thomas and I stated back in August that we were going to take all of the time and we certainly did to make that decision. That was in the best interest of the team in this situation and that's what we decided to do."
More on collins if they wanted him back. "That's what we decided to do and we knew that we had all the time to do that. We thought we'd gather all of the info that we wanted. But at the end of the day we always want to do what's right for the team. At this point, that was the best decision for us."
On the play of the secondary. "For us, we didn't feel that it was necessary for us to make any additional moves in that regard. We are happy with the guys in terms on how they are competing and battling for it. That's why we felt it was best interest for the team to keep playing like we are."
On the Bucs receivers. "(DeSean Jackson's) ability to change directions. He has one of the best abilities to track a deep ball. He's not just fast. He can go full speed and at the last minute he turn and create that kind of catch. Some guy shave to turn and look for a long time. His ability to track the ball out of the air at the last second is one of the very best in the league. We have a lot of regard for him. I think their tight play has certainly picked up over the last couple of years. That's a part of their team that is really strong as well. At receiver, at tight end and they have a whole bunch of running backs. They have different weapons and different sizes. Big tight ends. Tall tight ends. Receivers who can play in the slot. A real downhill running back and others who are more like change of direction. That kind of versatility when you have that many weapons. That's what this week is for, trying to find who matches up and where."
On DeSean Jackson as a deep threat. "It's always a threat, that part of his game. Everybody's looking for explosive plays, so sometimes it may not be a straight nine route down the field. It could be a deep over route, or in his case a catch-and-run play, a 15-yard pass that ends up a 30- or 40-yard gain due to his ability to catch it on the run and really accelerate. The deep ball is one part of his game, but his ability to take one that's short long, to me that's a big part of it."
Quinn mentioned improvement on third downs and in the red zone, do you see any other signs of the offense gathering team, and are you surprised they've been able to do that with Devonta missing all but two snaps of those two games? "We're champing at the bit to get him back and I know he is, too, but having the ability to create some third downs where you convert allows us more opportunities so now our time of possession's better, our run attempts go better, and then in turn some of our shots downfield on the play-action is better. We've hit on a few of the shot plays in the last couple weeks, and that's a big part of what we do. That's where some of the explosive plays come from, where the passes are over 20 yards where early in the year we weren't hitting on some of those.
“The ability to convert on third down, the byproduct is you get more plays. Now, there’s more run opportunities, more play action, so having more chances is I think a byproduct of playing better on third down . . . we feel like we can still make big gains in that area.”
How did De'Vondre Campbell do when he was on Jimmy Graham? "That's a part of 'Dre that in my opinion has had a big tick this year in terms of his ability to guard tight ends man-to-man. He did it some last year, for sure, but his awareness, his ability to do that more has been a real factor, and when you play a guy like Graham it's not just one guy's job where he's going to play that for the [entire] day. You'd better have a couple guys who are up for the task who can do that.
“Fortunately for us, we’re in that world where we have at least two players that have that kind of size and length that are able to guard the bigger, longer receiving type players.”
Tampa Bay’s defense is playing particularly well against the pass; what have you seen?
“I’ve always felt that when you play in their system it starts with the rush, and the get-off, and [Gerald] McCoy’s at the very front of that. His ability to jump off the ball as an inside rusher is really unique. He’s got the size of a big guy, but the quickness of a smaller man so he can beat somebody to the punch. He can be disruptive.
“I’ve been especially impressed by the speed of their linebackers. Not only can they play in their zone, they can also guard man-to-man.
Those two things two me are what set their speed apart.
“(Brent) Grimes is still a playmaker and into that mode where he can read and diagnose a play faster than most and get his hands on the football.”
Is the NFC South shaping up to be even tougher than you thought it would be given some of the things the Saints are doing and other developments? "I knew it was going to be a battle, and that will certainly be the case this weekend. They always are. We had real regard for the division before the season started and as you go through the season and look at the different matchups and the different ways that teams play, it's definitely a challenge as we expected.
"For us, it's just this week, the here and now."
What would you say about pass protection? The last few weeks you've played against some pretty good fronts. "That's a good front that can rush. I think in the last two games against Seattle, we had seven or eight sacks and . . . I think we had one in last week's game against guys who really know how to rush and get going.
“That part helps when you’re not getting in some third-and-long situations, and you can play in a little bit more manageable third down spots.
“That part of a game we’re working hard to keep improving. The run game, and the play-action pass and the drop-back makes defending our offense a challenge and when all those things start coming together . . . we haven’t played our best yet, but man we’re chasing it hard. I feel like we’re improving as we’re going.”
Does Ryan Fitzpatrick have more mobility than he's given credit for having? "I would say it's definitely under-rated. Already this year, he almost has as many yards on scrambles as [Jameis] Winston has. His ability to [convert] some third downs on the run has been evident in the games that we have evaluated. He's not going to just remain a pocket passer.
“When he sees [defenders’] backs turned . . . no, he’s not Russell [Wilson] in terms of mobility, but he does have the ability to create.”
Do they give you an update on where Freeman is in the concussion protocol process? "He's still in the protocol so hopefully we'll get another shift in it this week, but no, I won't give you an update."
Producer Matt Winkeljohn contributed to the post.
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