What Matt Ryan said after the 23-17 loss to the Bills
Here’s what Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan said after the 23-17 loss to the Bills:
On the fourth down and one play:
"It was an opportunity for us to try and get them to come up and then throw behind them. It didn't work out for us, which was disappointing. We had a lot of opportunities throughout that drive to make some plays. We just didn't make them at the end of the game. It's disappointing. We did a lot of things throughout the course of the game that made it difficult to overcome. When you turn the football over three times and you're minus-three in the turnover category, it's tough to win games. We battled for sure. We are disappointed to lose, but we fell a little bit short."
On whether his arm was moving forward when throwing the ball:
"I thought so, but it's not my job to rule or officiate. That's just one of those bang-bang plays that are tough."
On whether the Bills were crowding the line of scrimmage on the last play:
"Yes."
On the other options during the last play:
"We had a run opportunity there. They had eight or nine guys close down into the box. I felt like it was a good opportunity for us with the play action pass, but it didn't work out."
On turning the ball over:
"It's just one of those things. Sometimes physical mistakes happen. That's part of playing sports. We like to work as hard as we possibly can to try and make those things not happen, but we all make mistakes at certain points. I've certainly made a ton of mistakes throughout my career. It's disappointing. We're better than that. I'm better than that from an offensive standpoint in terms of taking care of the ball. We've got to make better decisions, and I do too in order to give ourselves a chance to win games. It's just difficult to overcome a three-turnover deficit. We did it last week, but it was a little too much to overcome today."
On Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu getting injured:
"Obviously those guys are a big part of what we do. When you lose one of them, it's tough and when you lose two of them, it's difficult. I'm proud of the way our guys stepped up. I thought Nick Williams came in and did a really nice job for us. Justin Hardy did a really good job for us. He made some good plays and a very nice catch on the touchdown. That's what happens in this league. There are times when you have to have guys step up and make plays. I think those guys did a pretty good job. When you lose two of your top players, it's difficult."
On whether he knew if Julio Jones was going to play or not:
"Both those guys were trying to do everything that they can to stay in the game. They're just great competitors and sometimes you just can't play. Your body just won't go. From a player standpoint, I don't get too involved in it. You've got to go out there, and you've got too much to concentrate on. There are too many other things to concentrate on. I kind of knew those guys were out, but you've got to go with the guys you have."
On whether those injuries change the way the offense plays:
"Maybe a little bit. I think it changes the way people defend us when you have Julio and Mohamed out there because they are bigger guys. They're certainly aware of where they're at. We might have seen a little bit of different coverages and pressures in the second half, but for us, we trust all of our guys to go out there and make plays. We called the plays that we had in the plan and trusted them to go out there and do it. I thought our guys did a pretty nice job of stepping in."
On Bills head coach Sean McDermott:
"He's obviously a very good coach. We know that from having played against him in Carolina for a number of years. They're always well prepared and tough. All of our battles with Carolina for the six years he was there were difficult. We knew that coming into it. We knew they were going to be very well-prepared and play hard, and they did. They played well, and they played better than we did today."
On the bye week:
"Any time the bye rolls around, it's an opportunity for guys to get healthy regardless of what time of the year it is. We have some guys that need to get healthy, and hopefully the week to rest will allow us to do that. We also have to take a look at where we're at and find ways to improve. I'm sure that's something that the coaching staff will work hard on this week. From a player standpoint, we need to do the same thing."
About the Author
Honored by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his "long and distinguished reporting in the field of pro football," D. Orlando Ledbetter, Esq. has covered the NFL 28 seasons. A graduate of Howard University, he's a winner of Georgia Sportswriter of the Year and three Associated Press Sports Editor awards.
