Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan suffered another embarrassing loss to the New England Patriots on Thursday night. While this one won't sting nearly as much as the last one, the 25-0 final score marked the first time Falcons have been shut out since 1988.
Ryan addressed several topics with the media after the game Thursday night including missing running back Cordarrelle Patterson, his health, and moving forward after another big loss.
On the difficulty of not having Cordarrelle Patterson on the field:
“It's always tough when you don't have some of your guys out there. C.P. has been such a big part of what we've done offensively. But the rest of the group, we didn't do enough to be as productive as we needed to be. It's always tough when guys are out, but it's never an excuse. You’ve got to find a way to get the job done. Wasn't a good enough effort from us on the offensive side of the ball.”
On his toe and what the Patriots did to limit Kyle Pitts:
“[My] toe is fine. I think it will be okay moving forward. I thought they had a plan coming in to try and disrupt some of the things that Kyle does for us, whether it be dropping guys into zone underneath, some of the crossing routes he had, some of the corner routes that he had, then trying to jam and reroute at the line of scrimmage. Credit to them. I thought New England had a good plan and played very well.”
On the pressure New England was able to generate:
“I think that's one of the things we've got to watch the film. Again, I thought they did a good job defensively of trying to create internal pressure and stressing some of the things we do. We certainly have to be better than we were today. But credit to them. I thought they played well.
On whether his toe impacted his ability to throw and/or move around:
“I don't think it impacted throwing. I moved fine. I didn't think it impacted it too much.”
On what he said to his teammates on the sideline:
“Just get guys going, try and create a spark. When it's not going that way, you're always trying to find the thing that's going to connect, click, get guys going. It was saying, we don't need to do anything extra, we just have to do what we're coached to do and do it really well. Across the board, myself included, we didn't do a good enough job of that the entire night.”
On the offensive struggles over the last two games:
“It's been a tough five days offensively. It's just across the board. We haven't thrown the ball well enough. We haven't run the ball well enough. I've got to be more accurate. We've all got to be more effective with what we're asked to do in terms of the game plan. We got a nice little extra few days to take a deep dive into what we can do better moving forward. We certainly got to take advantage of that.”
On whether there is one thing that is particularly disappointing from an offensive standpoint:
“Well, lack of production. Whatever that is caused by, that's the most disappointing. I think our defense did a nice job keeping us in the game the entire night well into the fourth quarter, making it a two-score game. We had chances. We've got to find a way. Whatever it is, whatever we have to do moving forward, we got to find a way to be more productive than we've been.”
On what gives him the confidence that the team can turn things around:
“Well, there's also evidence throughout the year of what it can look like. That's what you have to look at. I know the last two games, the last five days, have been tough. I mean, there's no question about it. It's been frustrating. There has been production and good play throughout the year. We got to find a way to get back to that.”
On having two consecutive difficult games:
“I think that's where you got to have -- that's where good leadership comes in, keeping the belief there. Seven games to go. Certainly, everything is still right in front of us. It's got to get corrected. That's the biggest thing I think in these types of situations. I've been through all kinds of different situations throughout my career. I think good leadership, holding people accountable, making sure that we're getting the things corrected that we need to get corrected. Those are the two things I think will be key.”
On whether he has any doubt he’ll be able to play next week:
“No. I felt good enough to go in the second half. I think I'll be good to go.”
On his impressions of Mac Jones:
“I thought Mac did a nice job. He's done a great job all year. He's been really efficient, accurate with the football, made some great throws tonight into some tough coverage. I thought he played well, and I think he's played well most of the year.”
On the interception he threw while targeting Kyle Pitts:
“It was man-to-man coverage. I was trying to lay it out in front. It felt like there was a lot of contact. We didn't get a call there, so it was trying to put it over the top, give him a chance to run and make a play. Didn't work out.”
On New England’s plan to take away Kyle Pitts and not having Cordarrelle Patterson available:
“Having gone against them, having watched them in the past, that's one of the things they're very good at. When C.P. wasn't able to go tonight, when we found out, you obviously come into it saying, Okay, probably next in line would be Kyle. He still did some good things for us, for sure. But credit to them. I really think they played well.
On the team’s difficulty running the ball:
“It's one of the things we got to do better. We got to find a way. It sets up so many things. It slows down pass-rush, helps you set up some of the play-action pass you're doing. It wears out the defense when you run the ball effectively. That's something we certainly would like to do better.”
On the possibility of running a quarterback sneak on the third-and-1 and/or fourth-and-1 plays:
“We had two chances. The third-and-1 and the fourth-and-1. Art [Arthur Smith] felt like both were going to be successful for us. In terms of a sneak front, they were kind of loaded on the inside. I don't think it would have made a difference.”
More must-reads: