Smith happy about third straight winning season
Falcons head coach Mike Smith congratulates tight end Tony Gonzalez on his 4-yard touchdown catch that gave the Falcons a 10-3 lead before the half. Curtis Compton, ccompton@ajc.com
Falcons coach Mike Smith sounded a bit hoarse in the post-game interview.
He’s either catching a cold and was doing a lot of yelling during the game.
Here’s some of the highlights from his post-game press conference.
OPENING STATEMENT: “Just another day in the Dome. We talked all week about ball security and being able to control the tempo in all three phases of the game and I think we got that accomplished today. I think all three phases contributed to the success that we had. That’s a very good football team that we played today. It was very hard fought. They made a lot of plays. We were able to make some plays. We made our mistakes. They made their mistakes. But I’m really proud of the way the guys performed today. Their effort was outstanding.”
ON FOURTH QUARTER SCORING: “It’s part of the makeup of the things you have to do to be successful. You’ve got to score points in the fourth quarter of the ball game either to seal the game or come back. We’ve been able to do that. It was a very good drive there at the end.”
ON FOURTH DOWN GAMBLES: “We’ve got a lot confidence in our offensive football team. There were two instances were we felt like you’ve got to be able to move the ball inside the 1-yard line when it was fourth-and-1. I felt like we had to score points.”
ON RESILENCY OF THE TEAM: “I can’t say enough about the resiliency of this team. The way that they come to work. The way that they play the game. I just felt like it was a team effort. No one blinked even when we gave up the touchdown on the fourth down and 11. They came over and they know we are going to move the ball. . . (After return and penalty) we were just basically a completion away form having Matt Bryant in his range. I can’t say enough about Matt. He is kicking the ball between the pipes ever chance that he gets.”
ON THE D-LINE: “The defensive line had some tough duty today all the way around. They were facing a very good quarterback that gets the ball out of his hands very quickly.”
ON TURNER’S TOUCHDOWN: “It was just a power football play. We had our fullback leading through the play. It was mano-a-mano. When you are inside the 1-yard line, you’ve got to win your battles.
ON THE 3RD STRAIGHT WINNING SEASON: “It’s great to get winning season. But our expectations and our goals are a lot higher than that. We want to keep them internally, but we are progressing on our journey to where we want to be as a football team. In December that’s when the games become very important.”
ON THE TEAM’S CONFIDENCE LEVEL: “It’s a group that doesn’t blink. They don’t’ blink. There is no, ‘woe is me, the sky is falling.’ They know that whatever happened on the previous play, happened on the previous play. We have to go make a play on the next play. . .I think it starts with the confidence level of our older players. They are very good mentors to the young guys and they are teaching the young guys how the game is supposed to be played.”
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107 comments Add your comment
Singletary
November 29th, 2010
9:40 am
Good one, Sid! Starting in the first season, my Dad and I would watch the games. We had a (painful) running joke that the Falcons never officially won until five minutes after the game ended. My father-in-law watched the 2008 Chicago game, and became a believer in that. We’d DVR’d the game so, after I stomped off, he yelled upstairs to me: “They won.” I was shaking so much I couldn’t run the DVR, My then 12YO had to do it. How did they win with 11 seconds left? How did they win against Balt with 65 seconds left? Anyone else got a tally on the number of seconds for the comeback rallies, like SF, etc?
Savage57
November 29th, 2010
9:44 am
From this reasonable cheesehead, congrats to the Falcons and their fans. You did what a good team should do – you held serve in your house. Your team reminds me of the ‘07 Packers. Coming off an 8-8 season, nobody expected anything, flew under the radar most of the year, everyone waiting for them to fall. Good QB, serviceable running game, questionable secondary. Wound up 13-3, but lost at home in the Champ game.
Good luck the rest of the way, and perhaps like that 07 season when the Pack beat the Giants in the regular season but wound up losing to them in the Champ game, we’ll see you again!
billy
November 29th, 2010
9:58 am
Best part of the game was seeing all the smiles on the GB sideline after they scored their final points and absolutely KNOWING that they wouldn’t be smiling in about 1 minute. Classic.
Tense game. Sure to be an increase in ulcers in the ATL by seasons end. We’re not going to blow anyone out but keep it close and win in the end. Matt lacks the superior deep ball skills but is turning into a great field general. Go birds!
PMC
November 29th, 2010
10:02 am
I feel like Coach Smith makes me a better more focused fan. Worried about the things worth worrying about.
Thanks Coach.
G
November 29th, 2010
10:02 am
Why does ESPN say that GB lost the game on a facemask? If he didn’t pull Weems down by his facemask Weems would have run it all the way back. The guy that got the penalty was the last one to beat. The penalty actually gave them a chance to stop us.
Cheesehead
November 29th, 2010
10:17 am
Great win for Falcons! KUDOS!!! They look Superbowl bound. More balanced than Green Bay.
Keep it going Falcons!!!
The Faithful
November 29th, 2010
10:17 am
This team is fantastic.
Fun to watch, well coached and is getting the most out of its players. They always find a way to win even though we don’t really have that many star players.
You can sort of forgive the media for not having a love affair with us. I mean in all my years of being a fan, we have seldom won and when we did, we didn’t win it all, we couldn’t even back it up the following season. We don’t have the bickering, we don’t have the fights, we don’t have big mouth coaches and players that make the news just because they are on MTV.
What we do have is an Organizing instilled winning attitude that is displayed every time the team takes the field. I have always been a proud fan, but now I am a proud fan of a winning team.
The media can continue to dismiss us, but I believe in this team and more importantly, they believe in themselves.
Go Falcons, bring glory upon yourselves, the organization, and the team!
The Faithful
Cheesehead
November 29th, 2010
10:19 am
OH & hopefully they will see each other again in Playoffs!! GREAT GAME!!
FrontRow
November 29th, 2010
10:29 am
D’led need to post another DVR alert – GB@ATL is on replay Tuesday @9:15.
Doc Cheney
November 29th, 2010
10:46 am
I commented a while back that the birds got outcoached on the road twice this year (obviously PIT & PHI).
Yesterday I saw a home team with an excellent game plan that was executed nearly flawlessly.
I hope and expect to never again suggest that our team is outcoached in a game.
Well done, Smitty!!!
(I would say well done VanGorter, but I am hoping no one outside ATL notices him and tries to lure him away.)
Concerned
November 29th, 2010
11:08 am
Eventually Murphy’s Law will come into play.
Lets hope its not in the 1st round of the playoffs.
You can’t keep believing we will come out on top of all these struggles.
Why do we make it so hard?
I would hate to see a 14-2 season end in a 1 and done again.
North FLA Falcon
November 29th, 2010
11:10 am
Great, great win. The pass defense is still our weakness and it could hurt us if/when we get to the playoffs. Our no-bump, soft cover is just way too easy for QBs like Rodgers or Brees. We need a consistent pass rush too. The 2nd GB touchdown was gut-wrenching to watch. We dropped 8 or 9 guys and they still scored? On offense it was nearly a flawless game. We did get a little predictable in the 3rd quarter and kept GB in the game. Pound Turner up the middle, sure, but try some other things too. We were pretty creative throughout the game and Ryan played great. The personal fouls are getting to be a bit of a problem — 3 in the first half? (Dahl + 2 others) … we need to be mature enough to withstand the smack talk and chippy hits. Because they are going to get worse. TB and New Orleans are going to bring it … will we? Keep it up! Go Birds!
Meredith in MN
November 29th, 2010
11:14 am
Falcon fans – Congrats on a good win! Hopefully we’ll see you again and we can even the score!
Concerned
November 29th, 2010
11:22 am
Enter your comments here
Concerned
November 29th, 2010
11:25 am
An interesting scenario would be:
Falcons get the 1 seed and win their 1st round game.
Eagles get 2nd seed and win their 1st round game.
Falcons vs Eagles in the dome.
Meredith in MN
November 29th, 2010
11:28 am
P.S. Your crowd is going to have to step it up for the playoffs. Without the thousands of Packer fans, the dome would have been awfully quiet. Also, it was disappointing to see you follow in the tradition of the Vikings – piping in music to drown out the “Go Pack Go” chants…. (although the Vikings pipe it in for everything). You’ve got a really good team to cheer for, rise up and take advantage of your home field advantage!
Doc Cheney
November 29th, 2010
11:52 am
A beautiful Sunday afternoon. Spoiled only by having to share the Dome with a bunch of homely fat white chix in Clay Matthews jerseys. News flash, big girls: Clay’s gay.
But I hear Ben Roethlesberger is available.
Chop Buster
November 29th, 2010
11:53 am
We’re not concerned about 3rd winning seasons. This team is in pursuit of the ultimate prize…the Lombardi trophy. Bring it home to Atlanta baby! Let’s keep playing solid ball in all three phases and show everyone that we can win, just not in the dome, but on the road as well. Go Falcons!!!
monty
November 29th, 2010
12:04 pm
Great to see a team that can compete with any other, week-in, week-out. That said, I don’t know if this team is as good as their record. We haven’t dominated anyone that I can remember and we seem to “escape” with wins. Green Bay’s QB accounted for almost 400 yards of offense, way too much to be a great team, maybe really good is just good enough. We’ll see.
Ueeediot
November 29th, 2010
12:17 pm
Yawn,
9-2…..
Keep Hating….
Bobby Cox took a group and made a hell of a playoff run (wouldve won the NL if we hadnt had those major injuries…oh well) and all we heard was how terrible it was….
The Falcons are 9-2 and I hear people as we leave the Dome….”If they beat New Orleans, Ill be a believer”
Newsflash….they already beat New Orleans….
9-2….see you next week.
Falcons Decatur
November 29th, 2010
12:18 pm
Great game Sunday are running was good, passing game good, but we have to work on defense pass cover. I am glad that Phil lost to the Bears, and looked at the Bear schedule and they play some hard teams down the stretch. Falcons have two or three trap games they have to play BUCS, SAINTS, and maybe the SEAHAWKS. Falcons have no choice but to win all of their games if they want to get home field advantage. The standing are two close, but the Falcons have to take one game at a time. GO FALCONS!!!!
ctfalconsfan
November 29th, 2010
12:27 pm
Great win yesterday but GB went up and down the field on us. We need to tighten up our pass defense.
DOL – Ask Van Goder why in the heck we would rush 3 on 3rd and goal on the 15? (I believe) and give Rogers ALL DAY to throw a TD pass. That was totally unacceptable!!
FalconsFan284
November 29th, 2010
12:29 pm
My favorite day is the day after a Falcons win. No Joe Tess, no SeenthisB4 and a bunch of good fans cheering this team on. This was a huge win but now it’a time to think about running over Tampa Bay!
Far_East
November 29th, 2010
12:54 pm
D Led,
I was just reading an article you wrote about the game and I almost fell off my seat after going through this line:
“The Falcons needed only 20 yards to get into Bryant’s range. Ryan, throwing quick passes to Roddy White and Michael Jenkins, and two to Harry Douglas, moved the Falcons to the 29 before Bryant was summoned and executed.”
My God, do we still have a kicker?
Johnny Fever
November 29th, 2010
12:57 pm
We have the power of Samel L Jackson on our side. RISE UP! “Now thats what im talking about!”
Matt Bryant
November 29th, 2010
1:01 pm
I was summoned, and I executed. Or, if you prefer: I was summoned. Then I executed. Or: The coach summoned me; I executed.
Matt Bryant
November 29th, 2010
1:04 pm
I love how all the geniuses on here like to point out that our defensive secondary is soft. With those kind of observational skills, you could get a job as an Atlanta Public Schools test monitor.
It’s the weakness in personnell that makes what the team is accomplishing by preventing big plays extraordinary. Great job yesterday, guys. You, too, Grimes. Survive another week.
Matt Bryant
November 29th, 2010
1:06 pm
and by the way, dropping eight in that third and goal from the 15 was the right call. Rodgers just happened to make an incredible throw and Jenkins made a really difficult play look easy. Nothing wrong with the coaching or effort on our side yesterday.
ziggy zombo
November 29th, 2010
1:08 pm
Falcons can have this win – Enjoy cause Pack will win in January! We’ll challenge some calls next time!
Bsteed
November 29th, 2010
1:11 pm
Won’t it be wonderful when consecutive winning seasons is something we don’t even think about, when it becomes the status quo?
ziggy zombo
November 29th, 2010
1:20 pm
I have an irrational sense of entitlement and project my own sense of accomplishment on sports teams I follow. Even though my team lost a crucial game less than 24 hours ago, I will not admit to myself that the Packers are unbalanced and probably the fourth or fifth best team in the NFC.
With a weak defensive secondary and virtually no running game, the Pack will bow out sheepishly in the first round of the playoffs.
Bsteed
November 29th, 2010
1:23 pm
BTW-Monty- 1) This is the NFL, where every player is a professional and paid millions to play this game. Dominating a game is the exception and not the rule. 2) check out the second game, a dominating 41-7 win, 3)I am interested to know how you OBJECTIVELY and EMPIRICALLY define “good” other than by the record. In my opinion, that is what being good is, winning the games you play. By your method, would a team that wins the super bowl by three or less points be a team of inferior quality?
ziggy zombo
November 29th, 2010
1:23 pm
I wear a giant pastic cheese wedge on my head and a giant turd in my pants. It’s called sportsmanship, and you jerks in Atlanta need to learn something about it. Looking like an assclown in public is only the beginning, though. If you want to have a real competitive edge, you absolutely must soil your pants during the game and then mumble unintelligibley about Atlanta’s socio-economic statistics while using mass transit after the game. It’s called finishing the play.
Joe Phish Breath
November 29th, 2010
1:45 pm
Yu shut-up mo ! !
Ivan
November 29th, 2010
1:49 pm
@Far_East
I noticed that too. Bryant certainly took one for team yesterday. Other players should be weary Smith doesn’t call their number; he means serious business this year.
ziggy zombo
November 29th, 2010
1:58 pm
Keep talking – we’ve been there and seen both sides. I’ll be back online in January to visit.
BayouMudBug91
November 29th, 2010
2:20 pm
If the little dirty birds do (like believing in santa) go to the SuperBowl, I wonder who will get arrested before the game this year? (hint-Eugene (where is the hookers) Robinson.)
WHO DAT!
Just saying..
November 29th, 2010
2:22 pm
I’m a big Falcons fan– and I think I’m nearly as big a Mike Smith fan.
Sick & Tired Of Being Sick & Tired
November 29th, 2010
4:29 pm
Folks don’t worry about the haters or the detractors……they will always be negative about the Falcons because that is the way they probably live their lives (A lot of negativity)…..always hating on someone else for their successes.
No matter how low some people are on the social totem pole of life…they always have to hate on something or someone else in order to feel powerful and relevant. It’s a sad existence but it’s their “THANG”.
SOOOOOOOO…..LET THEM KEEP HATING AND WE’LL KEEP SUPPORTING THE ATLANTA FALCONS!!!!
Fred Macmurray
November 29th, 2010
4:48 pm
And I thought Will Smith was a nice young man,,, you just never know…
Falcon Jim
November 29th, 2010
5:59 pm
You are so right, Sick & Tired.
Fred, I love it. HA HA HA.
alanfalcon
November 29th, 2010
6:59 pm
Great win, I wonder when the National media will give the Falcons the credit they deserve, I guess they don’t like a team that plays together without controversey.
GO FALCONS AND GO SOUTHERN RUSH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Falcon James
November 29th, 2010
7:35 pm
Well the Falcon pulled off another win. But you have to admit they looked week again. Abe was winded for most of the game. The falcon should be 5 and 6. The record don’t indicate how bad we really is. Our secondary stink. The defense line couldnt get the packers QB. our offence let Ryan get knocked around all day. Tony G couldnt catch a ball, Robinson look overpaid, AND once again our Kicker Bryant was the MVP! As I say and say, our Kicker is the best player on the team.
Mike
November 29th, 2010
8:04 pm
I’m watching the boobs on ESPN and they picked the Bears , Packers , Buccaneers and the Saints over the team with the BEST RECORD IN THE NFC, my FALCONS. ARE YOU KIDDING ME !!!!!. Let’s keep flying under the radar and listen to the ESPN boobs choke on their words. And Chris Collinsworth is still a worthless commentator in all of football. By the way, thank you Matt Millen for giving no up’s to the BIRDS, that’s why you got canned from Detroit. THEY ARE ALL LOSERS. GO BIRDS ,,,, RISE UP.
Frozen Rope
November 29th, 2010
9:38 pm
Sorry, The Falcons didnt look “Week”,, they loolked pretty darn good to me,, Matt Ryan is $$$$$$
Falcon James
November 29th, 2010
9:52 pm
Jim, thank for grammer check, but i thinks i can spells just fine without you help. i take it you agree with my comment for you to spends so much time on it. in the future, i will try to make it so even a red kneck eigth grader hamburger tosser at mcdonalds can understand. you wont fryes wit dat?
By the way, the formal versions of James is Jim.
Falcon Jim
November 29th, 2010
10:39 pm
What ? ?
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA ! ! ! ! !
Falcon Jim
November 29th, 2010
10:41 pm
….whew, he he………..whew……………HA HA….whoa………………….
HA HA ha ha………..he………….he………………………………………
Thomas
November 29th, 2010
11:00 pm
This was a great win, but I would like to see VanGorder pressure the opposing QB more when they were 4th and whatever, and Abraham was the only person rushing the passer. I know it is Smitty’s defense, but I would love to see more pass rush especially when they are so close to our Endzone.
jalex49
November 30th, 2010
7:46 am
Great win. I being a falcons fan since the late seventies have never seen a falcon team so focused and committed. The way these players have each other back is so refreshing in today’s atmosphere of NFL player trash talking and media hype.
I can’t say how proud I am of being an Atlanta Falcon fan knowing that not only has the team been winning and playing solid football but they so far, have beaten teams of importance.
I truly hope these players understand not only what they have done for Atlanta but for Falcons fans around the globe. It feels a lot better to put on a falcon hat or jersey and know that we do it with pride but yet with understanding that things can change in a “flash”, if the team is not carefull.
To use as an example the 1997 team and the let-down it provided to the Falcon fans in the Super Bowl. I do not believe that this group of players and coaches will let history repeat itself. There seems to be too much “team” pride and focus.
Thank you Falcon players and Coaches. I am so proud of this team. ‘WHO DAT?” The Falcons that’s who!!!!!!!