Tag: Dan Quinn

Pro Football Focus credits Saints pass rush with 41 QB pressures vs. Falcons

The New Orleans Saints defense started and ended their game with the Atlanta Falcons by sacking Matt Ryan, but the story is larger than that

The Atlanta Falcons did everything they could to take the New Orleans Saints defense out of the game on Thursday night. They forced the Saints defenders to remain on the field for a season-high 93 plays, expecting the heightened workload to tire them out down the stretch.

It didn’t happen. If anything, the prolonged playing-time hurt Atlanta’s own blockers. The Falcons allowed 5 sacks in their last 15 snaps (one of which was wiped out by a Saints defensive penalty) and 9 on the day as a whole, leading coach Dan Quinn to take aim at specific players for mistakes in his postgame media availability — a rarity in their troubled season. Quinn has largely avoided singling out struggling players, but he was left with no choice after the beatdown they suffered on Thanksgiving in front of a national audience.

Quinn told Falcons team reporter Kelsey Conway that two of the sacks were at fault of starting left tackle Jake Matthews, the team’s first-round pick back in 2014. Two more sacks were put on rookie first-rounder Kaleb McGary at right tackle, while big free agent signing Jamon Brown and star running back Devonta Freeman each allowed a sack of their own. Quinn chalked up three other sacks to lockdown coverage by New Orleans.

However, there was more to the Saints’ success than just their takedowns. They pressured Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan relentlessly, as seen in their game grades from the analysts at Pro Football Focus. The Saints pass rush was credited with 41 total quarterback pressures on the day, including all of those sacks, often moving Ryan off of his spot and hurrying him through his reads. Three different Saints defensive linemen received grades above 90 (defensive ends Cameron Jordan and Marcus Davenport, and rookie nose tackle Shy Tuttle) as did rookie slot defender C.J. Gardner-Johnson.

When the Saints are getting after quarterbacks this well, there aren’t many passers who can hold up to such repeated pressure. The Saints played one of them already this season in Seattle Seahawks MVP candidate Russell Wilson; if things keep going the way they have so far, New Orleans might not see the other one until Super Bowl LIV, if Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens can go the distance.

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Behind Enemy Lines: 4 questions with Saints Wire

To help us preview this holiday matchup, we went behind enemy lines with John Sigler, the managing editor of Saints Wire. Here are four questions ahead of tonight’s game.

The Atlanta Falcons haven’t given their fans much to be thankful for this season, but one bright spot was the team’s Week 10 upset over the Saints.

Three weeks later, Atlanta has a chance to complete a season sweep over New Orleans in front of its home crowd on Thanksgiving. To help us preview this holiday matchup, we went behind enemy lines with John Sigler, the managing editor of Saints Wire.

Here are four questions ahead of tonight’s game.

It’s hard to imagine the Saints being able to win without Drew Brees in years past. What’s the biggest difference between this year’s team and those of previous seasons?

SW: Complementary football is the name of the game for the Saints this year. The team is getting huge contributions out of the defense and special teams units, whether it’s the defense stopping the Panthers six times inside the 10-yard line to close out last week’s game, or if it’s Thomas Morstead and the punt coverage unit downing more than half his tries inside the opposing 20-yard line. The offense has been up and down all year, but the Saints have made up for it by playing well in the other two phases. That’s a luxury Drew Brees and company haven’t always enjoyed, and when all three groups are firing on all cylinders, they’re tough to stop.

What happened to you guys in that Week 10 loss? Was it simply a fluke against a division opponent, or a sign of bigger problems for the Saints over the second half of the season?

SW: They just executed poorly, especially on offense. Michael Thomas was the only weapon who could make a play. Their offensive line was bullied by the Falcons defensive front. The Saints defense had unusual breakdowns in run discipline, and the loss of Marshon Lattimore opened up Atlanta’s passing attack. Whether the Saints weren’t dialed in after the bye week or simply laid an egg against a common opponent can’t be said, but they’ve played with much stronger focus in the weeks since.

Where is the weak spot on this Saints team that the Falcons could potentially attack on Thursday?

SW: There should be opportunities for Atlanta to make big gains through passes to their running backs. While nobody is going to confuse Brian Hill or an injured Devonta Freeman for Christian McCaffrey, the Saints defense often appeared to forget to assign someone to cover him in last week’s game with Carolina. He was given too much open space to run into out of the backfield and punished the Saints with 9 receptions for 69 yards and a touchdown. If New Orleans hasn’t figured out their coverage assignments against running backs, Matt Ryan will be able to toss layups all night long. Also, keep an eye on the Saints offensive line — star left tackle Terron Armstead and left guard Andrus Peat are out.

Game prediction/score?

SW: I think the Falcons are going to have too many injuries at too many positions to keep up with the Saints. New Orleans has finally gotten tight end Jared Cook going as a compliment opposite Thomas, and they’ll find ways to put up points. I question whether the Falcons can match them blow-for-blow considering the injuries to Freeman, Julio Jones, and Austin Hooper. This feels like a game for Alvin Kamara to remind the NFL world what he’s capable of on a national stage. Give me Saints 30, Falcons 24.

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Falcons won’t say who will start at right guard in Week 13

The Falcons struggled to block the Buccaneers in Week 12, giving up way too much pressure, particularly on the right side. Quarterback Matt Ryan was sacked six times during Sunday’s loss.

The Falcons struggled to block the Buccaneers in Week 12, giving up way too much pressure, particularly on the right side. Quarterback Matt Ryan was sacked six times during Sunday’s loss.

Right tackle Kaleb McGary and right guard Jamon Brown did not play their best games. McGary is a rookie and has played well this season, so you can live with his occasional struggles.

The same cannot be said about Brown, however, and offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter wouldn’t say who he planned to start at right guard on Thursday:

It will either be Brown or backup Wes Schweitzer starting next to McGary in the team’s Thanksgiving matchup with the Saints.

Brown was given a lucrative free agent contract in the offseason, but wouldn’t be starting if it were not for an injury to first-round pick Chris Lindstrom.

Atlanta defeated New Orleans in Week 10, thanks in large part to the offensive line playing its best game all year. We will see if the unit can replicate those results tomorrow night and complete a season sweep of a hated NFC South rival.

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Falcons are 6.5-point underdogs for Thanksgiving matchup with Saints

The Falcons are in better shape than they were three weeks ago, but after Sunday’s ugly loss to the Buccaneers, the momentum this team had built after winning two-straight games has all but disappeared.

The Falcons are in better shape than they were three weeks ago, but after Sunday’s ugly loss to the Buccaneers, the momentum this team had built after winning two-straight games has all but disappeared.

This Thursday, the NFC South-leading New Orleans Saints come to Atlanta for a Thanksgiving night battle. The Saints have a 9-2 record and look like a legit Super Bowl contender this season.

The Falcons, on the other hand, are 3-8 and in sole possession of last place in the division. However, you can throw records out the window when these two rivals play, as evidenced by Atlanta’s Week 10 upset over New Orleans despite being a double-digit underdog.

The odds came out for Thursday’s game and the Saints are again favored. Bet MGM has the Falcons opening as 6.5-point underdogs. The over/under is set at 49.5.

New Orleans squeaked out a three-point win over the Panthers on Sunday, but the team hasn’t quite looked as dominant since losing to Atlanta.

While the playoffs are certainly off the table for this 2019 Falcons team, to complete a sweep over a hated division rival on Thanksgiving would give fans something to take pride in during an otherwise dreadful year.

Kickoff for Thursday’s game is at 8:20 p.m, ET on NBC.

[Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.]

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Watch: Falcons coach Dan Quinn’s Monday press conference

The Falcons have just three days off before their Week 13 matchup with the Saints on Thanksgiving. That gives the team very little time to digest Sunday’s ugly loss to the Bucs, but that’s probably a good thing.

The Falcons have just three days off before their Week 13 matchup with the Saints on Thanksgiving. That gives the team very little time to digest Sunday’s ugly loss to the Bucs, but that’s probably a good thing.

Head coach Dan Quinn talked to reporters on Monday, giving updates on Devonta Freeman’s injury status and some thoughts on Atlanta’s upcoming Thursday night game.

Watch Quinn’s full press conference below, as tweeted out by the Falcons twitter account:

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Falcons RB Devonta Freeman likely to practice this week

The Falcons have been without starting running back Devonta Freeman for the past two weeks as he recovers from a foot injury. Head coach Dan Quinn gave an update this morning, saying he anticipates Freeman will return to practice this week: 

The Falcons have been without starting running back Devonta Freeman for the past two weeks as he recovers from a foot injury. Head coach Dan Quinn gave an update this morning, saying he anticipates Freeman will return to practice this week:

Freeman is having one of his worst years while Atlanta’s offensive line has been injured and ineffective at times this season. In the nine games he’s played in, he’s averaged just 3.5 yards per carry, with zero rushing touchdowns.

Backup Ito Smith is out for the season, while Brian Hill has been just as ineffective as Freeman. The Falcons’ rushing attack is ranked 31st in the league in yards per game.

Coming off Sunday’s loss to the Buccaneers, Atlanta has to quickly regroup and prepare for its Thanksgiving matchup with the Saints.

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Dan Quinn tells team there’s no time to dwell on loss to Buccaneers

The Falcons’ 35–22 loss to the Buccaneers was as frustrating as it gets, but the team must quickly shift focus to Week 13 with the New Orleans Saints coming to town for a Thursday night Thanksgiving battle.

The Falcons’ 35–22 loss to the Buccaneers was as frustrating as it gets, but the team must quickly shift focus to Week 13 with the New Orleans Saints coming to town for a Thursday night Thanksgiving battle.

In his postgame press conference, head coach Dan Quinn said he had told his players they didn’t have any time to dwell on Sunday’s letdown:

After suffering an eighth loss, the playoffs aren’t a real possibility for the Falcons this season. Still, getting two wins over a very good Saints team in less than a month would be a satisfying achievement in its own right.

The crowds at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta have been getting smaller and this team owes it to the fans to put on a respectable performance at home on Thanksgiving.

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Things we learned from Sunday of Week 12 of NFL season

Touchdown Wire’s Pat Yasinskas shares 9 things we learned from Sunday’s Week 12 NFL games.

The NFL results from Week 12 were supposed to set up two huge matchups for Week 13. Umm, looks like that may not happen.

The big games were supposed to be Mason Rudolph and the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns in a rematch after the Week 11 game in which Cleveland defensive end Myles Garrett clobbered Rudolph over the head with a helmet in a melee that caused Garrett to be suspended indefinitely and 33 players to be fined for their roles in the incident. Cleveland fans set the stage by hitting a Rudolph pinata with a helmet. That seemed to set up a monster rematch for next week.

The other huge game that seemed to be looming was an AFC West showdown between Kansas City and Oakland. The Chiefs, 7-4, were on bye Sunday. The Raiders entered the day at 6-4 and all they had to do was beat the lowly New York Jets to enter next week’s game in a tie with the Chiefs.

But, suddenly, some of the luster was taken off both games by what happened Sunday. Let’s take a closer look at that we examine nine things we learned from Sunday’s games of Week 12.

9. The Raiders aren’t as good as we thought

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Raiders had seemed to turn the corner and had a shot at winning the division or at least making the playoffs. People were talking about Jon Gruden as Coach of the Year. Those things still could happen, but they’re not nearly as likely after a 34-3 loss to the Jets. Gruden, who seemed to have the perfect relationship with Derek Carr, benched his quarterback in the third quarter. Carr had thrown for just 127 passes and an interception. There’s no question Carr will be back as the starter against Kansas City. But things aren’t looking as rosy for the Raiders as they would have been with a victory over the Jets.

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Dan Quinn says Falcons DE Vic Beasley has benefited from moving around

Head coach Dan Quinn talked on Wednesday about defensive end Vic Beasley, who’s recorded 2.5 sacks over the past two games. Quinn said the team’s decision to move Beasley around has helped him find success.

The Falcons have come alive defensively over the past two weeks, with some minor coaching and schematic changes effectively getting this team out of its slump.

Much has been made about Jeff Ulbrich and Raheem Morris taking over the play-calling duties, along with Ricardo Allen’s switch to strong safety, but another change has helped the defense become more effective.

Head coach Dan Quinn talked on Wednesday about defensive end Vic Beasley, who’s recorded 2.5 sacks over the past two games. Quinn said the team’s decision to move Beasley around has helped him find success.

Earlier this season, Beasley had become ineffective as a speed rusher that wasn’t getting to the quarterback. Freeing him up to switch sides has given opposing offensive lines problems.

The overall defensive communication has significantly improved as well, which has helped the entire unit play significantly better over the past two weeks.

Atlanta will look to win a third straight game when it hosts the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. The Falcons are currently 4.5-point favorites for their Week 12 matchup.

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Falcons coach Dan Quinn comments on Chris Lindstrom’s injury status

Falcons rookie guard Chris Lindstrom broke his foot in the team’s Week 1 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Ten weeks later, he’s still on the injured reserve list.

Falcons rookie guard Chris Lindstrom broke his foot in the team’s Week 1 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Ten weeks later, he’s still on the injured reserve list.

Head coach Dan Quinn gave an update on Lindstrom’s status Monday, per team reporter William McFadden:

Quinn would also comment on tight end Austin Hooper and running back Devonta Freeman, saying they are both likely to miss Wednesday’s practice at the very least:

Hooper was initially reported to be out about a month with an MCL sprain, but Quinn disputed this claim. Freeman, meanwhile, has an injured foot that kept him sidelined on Sunday.

We shall see how much time these two offensive starters wind up missing. The Falcons managed just fine without them during their Week 11 win over the Panthers due to another dominant defensive performance.

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