- 14 hours ago
Beating a 6-0 team feels great on a Monday, but does taking down the 49ers actually make the Atlanta Falcons a good football team? Steak Shapiro isn't ready to buy in until they prove they can stack wins and show consistency. Are you sold on Michael Penix Jr. and Kevin Stefanski, or do they have to beat Tampa Bay first?
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00:00Our day-to-day, if we had indeed blown that game where it looked like Brock Purdy was going to
00:06go down the field and get a 27-26 lead until Kendall Danis has the pick, I mean, it would
00:11have been a completely different day.
00:13It would have been, you know, how do we cheer each other up?
00:16It would have been depressing to realize we're out, two and five.
00:19I mean, you know, I mean, you're never really out of the NFC South.
00:22But it just would have been like, this is like the same old, like, it's just our entire narrative and
00:29tone.
00:30And, you know, outlook changes because of a couple of plays.
00:35And that's what happens in the NFL.
00:37And that's why I was the Falcons was where a couple of plays are usually what it comes down to.
00:41Well, I mean, look, let's talk about the Cleveland Browns.
00:44They're five and two.
00:45I think every single one of their wins have been a comeback victory.
00:48Deshaun Watson now has 17 career comeback victories with less than two minutes on the clock.
00:54I mean, that's what he does.
00:55So, to your point, a couple of plays swing the outcome of a game, and the narrative is totally different.
01:01I mean, the Browns are tied for the lead in the AFC North.
01:04They've got the tiebreaker because they beat the Steelers.
01:06The amount of one-score games in the National Football League is astronomical, right?
01:11Way bigger competitive balance than just about anything else.
01:14Although it does feel like with college football lately, every time there's a Saturday night game on, there's just something
01:19epic going on.
01:19I mean, the NFL is built on being down to the final possessions.
01:23The Ravens game, obviously, we needed one stop, and we would have been saying, like, oh, we're three and two
01:27with a three-game winning streak.
01:29Instead, we come into this with a two-game losing streak.
01:31So, all that.
01:33And we're going to play some cuts, but we can fill the phone lines up as well.
01:36It's my statement, even though I picked the Falcons all week, and I thought that somehow we've got to find
01:42a way to win the game,
01:42because going on four at home is just not who we are, we're better than that, is I don't know
01:47if we're a good football team.
01:48I mean, beating the 49ers does not make us a good football team.
01:52Beating Buffalo and Kansas City last year did not make us a good football team.
01:56Beating Tampa probably twice last year did not make us a good football team.
02:00Like, that's not what makes you a good team.
02:02Having a day against the Niners where they have four turnovers and we have none is a great thing.
02:08But otherwise, it's just an NFL, you know, algorithm or aberration that sometimes good teams lose to teams that are
02:16two and four,
02:17and it does not make a statement on the Falcons.
02:21And I don't know what we are, but don't – we can't sit here and go – now, after the
02:26Saints game, I said,
02:27we're a real good football team.
02:28I mean, it's obvious.
02:30We're blowing teams out on the road.
02:31First two games, you said it, were, you know, put up the – what did you call them?
02:36I said they punted on the first two games.
02:38Yeah, so, like, I was like – and then I learned my lesson.
02:41Because, like, good teams don't lose at home back-to-back games to teams that you should be able to
02:46have a chance to win.
02:47And they lost back-to-back games.
02:48Bears were coming off a horrible loss and smoked us.
02:51Ravens played a backup.
02:52So I was like, I'm not going to call us a good football team.
02:54Yeah, and they should have won that Sunday night football game as well, up eight, two minutes left.
02:58Against a backup?
02:59Yeah.
02:59So look what the Ravens have done since, right, without Lamar Jackson.
03:04Listen, so my question to listeners is how do you gauge what we are?
03:09Yeah, exactly.
03:10Like, I don't know what we are.
03:11How do you characterize the Atlanta Falcons through seven games?
03:14Because I said I'm not going to go in and start telling us, like, I told you we're a good
03:19football team.
03:19That's not what I was saying.
03:20I was saying we're not a bad football team, and only bad teams go 0-4 their first four home
03:28games.
03:28I know that sounds too simplistic.
03:29Yeah, I'm sure everybody saw the tweet going around that said the last time the Falcons won a home game,
03:34Raheem Morris was your head coach and Kirk Cousins was your starting quarterback.
03:37Right.
03:37It's crazy to think of that.
03:38Yeah, 4-0-4-7-2-6-0-9-2-9.
03:414-0-4-7-2-6-0-9-2-9.
03:44At 4-4 with those first two games the way they are, if we beat Tampa, we'd be 4-4.
03:50I'd say, yeah, I think we're a good football team.
03:51Season's on.
03:52Season is on.
03:53Yeah, because we'll be 4-2 under Penix, which is something you can hold on to.
03:58You could say Penix has, you know, looked like he's played certainly better than, you know, better than average.
04:06He's been above average, right?
04:07He's stacking some above average performances, spectacular ones against New Orleans and Green Bay.
04:13Pretty spectacular yesterday, too, checking down and doing everything, right?
04:16But I just don't know, and I wonder as a Falcon fan, your thoughts on it.
04:224-0-4-7-2-6-0-9-2-9.
04:26With a massive game coming up, 1 o'clock start in the division.
04:30Tampa, a team that you have had your way with for the last couple of years.
04:34Yeah, Tampa right now a 1.5 point favorite.
04:36The total sits at 44.5 points.
04:39And, you know, when you look at the history between these two teams, the Falcons have had their way with
04:44Tampa Bay.
04:45I was surprised yesterday that the Bucs looked as good out of the gates with Baker Mayfield back in the
04:51fold.
04:51I thought that there would be maybe a little bit of a time period where they needed to get things
04:57back together.
04:58But it seemed like whatever message that was sent to their locker room stake, like, hey, we've got the varsity
05:02squad back.
05:03Our starting quarterback is back in the mix.
05:05They absolutely thumped the Panthers yesterday.
05:08Yeah, humiliated them.
05:09Let's hear a Falcons postgame, though.
05:11We have all the access right after the game.
05:14Here is Kevin Stefanski with Dave Archer feeling good about that turnover margin.
05:21Really, really well coached.
05:23Great players up and down that roster.
05:24You're going to have to be at your best.
05:26Not perfect, but be at your best.
05:27And I thought the guys understood that, what it was going to take today.
05:30But, you know, it really starts with the turnover margin.
05:33To take it away four times, not give them anything.
05:35That's a great recipe for winning this league.
05:38Yeah, I mean, you're not going to lose too often 4-0 on turnovers.
05:42No, you should win every single game.
05:44It's shocking that you only won by nine points.
05:46Yeah, well, yeah, and it wasn't really a nine-point game.
05:51I mean, it was really like, although you get the two turnovers in, so I shouldn't say that.
05:54When it was 27-26, you got the Kendall Daniels pick.
05:58Yep.
05:58And then you got not even having to deal with onside kick and a field goal to make it.
06:03Would have been 29-23.
06:04Every Kittle fumbles at the 20 and the game's over.
06:09Right.
06:09Kittle trying to make a play.
06:11Obviously, they were down two scores, but yes.
06:13All right, here's more of Dave Archer with Kevin Stefanski.
06:17And I think his pride in how Michael Penix played.
06:23Yeah, that defense doesn't give up big plays.
06:25They just don't.
06:26It's an excellent coach defense.
06:28They got great players in the back end.
06:29They just keep everything in front of them and they tackle.
06:31So, as a quarterback, you got to stay disciplined.
06:33And I thought, listen, we called our plays to try to get the ball behind the defense.
06:36And Mike made great decisions.
06:38And when you check the ball down to guys like Drake or whomever it was out there, they made yards.
06:44Yeah, you got to be smart.
06:45You can't force it.
06:47And you see how quarterbacks get in trouble.
06:50I think I'll even watch an Arch Manning on why you worry about him in the NFL.
06:53You see how many balls he forces down the field because he wants a big play.
06:58You can't make those mistakes.
06:59You just cannot turn the ball over in the NFL.
07:01It is the ultimate death wish.
07:03And here is Kevin in the press conference talking about a guy that just keeps making plays, Jesse Bates.
07:11Man, that interception is as good as it gets.
07:13And we needed a play in that moment.
07:15And the ball skills and the wherewithal and the awareness to get your toe drag swag, that's pretty damn good
07:21for safety.
07:22So, really proud of Jesse for just being so aware of that football and making a play and then knocking
07:29it out later.
07:29I mean, he's playing at a high level.
07:32Yeah, I mean, listen, whether he is using that punch technique, which has just been incredible.
07:38Like, they need plays like that.
07:40That's how you become a good footballer.
07:42And you go, oh, you have a lot of good players.
07:43Wow, I'm looking at your roster.
07:45You've got a lot of good players.
07:46Here's Jesse talking about the pick, which was spectacular.
07:49Yeah, we knew Brock Purdy was going to extend plays and try to make plays outside the pocket.
07:54You know, I think he was looking for a receiver in the plaster type of situation.
07:58And, you know, anytime the ball's in the air, it belongs to us.
08:02And, you know, I was able to get my feet down.
08:04I've never played receiver in my life.
08:06But, you know, I got some good hands, I think.
08:08It also seemed like Brock Purdy, because Jesse Bates is exactly right, he tries to extend the play, gets outside
08:14the pocket, he looks down the field.
08:15I thought when I saw the interception happen that Purdy was trying to throw the ball away.
08:20What amazing awareness by Jesse Bates to break on that ball and then keep his, I think it was his
08:26left shin, on the ground before he went out of bounds for the interception.
08:30Yeah, Michael Pennix really struggled against Chicago around the pocket, but the offensive line, obviously, it's not like his mobility
08:36was a factor yesterday.
08:37It's just what he decided to do with it in terms of the football and decision-making.
08:42Here he is with Arch, talking about how he tried to go about attacking the 49ers.
08:51Yeah, we knew they were a team that's not going to give up too many explosives.
08:54So, for us, we just had to, you know, not get bored with the short passes and stuff like that,
08:58you know, but just continue to, you know, push forward.
09:00Just keep getting the ball downfield and don't make any mistakes.
09:04And that's an absolute key.
09:08Bijan in the passing game, Pitts in the passing game, the amount of different, four different tight ends catch passes,
09:14right?
09:15I mean, Drake London.
09:16Yeah, Nick Muse.
09:17Shout out Nick Muse.
09:18Touchdown.
09:18Yeah, the fourth tight end after Hooper, Warner, and Pitts.
09:22So, just an incredibly satisfying win.
09:25And I asked you the question, are we a good football team?
09:27I don't, I'm not coming in here on a Monday to tell you how great we are because we beat
09:31a 6-0 team.
09:32I've seen these wins before.
09:33I saw them with Kirk Cousins.
09:35I saw them with Michael Pennix.
09:37I mean, it's about consistency.
09:39Drew's one, you know, message has always been you've got to stack wins, right?
09:43The good teams in the league stack wins.
09:46That's how they do it.
09:47Let's get to the phone lines.
09:48Charles in South Carolina on Sports Radio 92.9.
09:52Good morning, good morning, good morning, good morning, good morning.
09:54You guys are not going to believe what I'm about to tell you, but I promise you, I told everybody
09:59all week long that the Falcons are going to win this game.
10:02But I've got the proof right here in my right front pocket right now that I've been telling everybody the
10:07fact I felt like they were going to win this game.
10:09But the problem is, for those of us who've been Falcon fans for a long, long time, the Falcons will
10:14have a win like this.
10:15They'll beat a team like San Francisco or beat a Dallas team that's good or beat a Seattle team that's
10:20good.
10:21And then that next freaking game, man, and that's the part that just makes me crazy.
10:26So, I just hope the consistency is a factor with this one.
10:29Great win.
10:31Man, Bates balled out.
10:32Great team win.
10:34Feels real good on a Monday.
10:35But I just want them to have that consistency that you're talking about.
10:38I could not agree more.
10:40And that is exactly what I said to Mike Johnson.
10:43And Mike Johnson's response was, that's why Kevin Stefanski was brought here.
10:47Because that has been too commonplace for this franchise over the last, call it, seven years.
10:53You beat a great team.
10:54You look so good against good competition.
10:56The next week, you're favored or you're at home.
11:00You seem like you're in a good spot.
11:02And then you just fall flat on your face.
11:04Yeah, and I wouldn't even call the Ravens game falling on your face.
11:07No.
11:07But it's just not being able.
11:09Listen, if you would beat the Ravens, the rest of the league would have said, well, there's your stack.
11:13Three in a row.
11:14All on primetime.
11:15And then Chicago was coming off a blowout.
11:17Sure.
11:17And you would have said, oh, they're four and one last five.
11:19That's a good football team.
11:20Yes.
11:21Completely different conversation.
11:22Yes.
11:22You lost that game.
11:23You lost to a backup quarterback on a Sunday night game.
11:26So you can't call yourself a good football team when you're sitting at three and four.
11:30Let's get Robert and McDonough.
11:31Robert, you're on Sports Radio 92.9 The Game.
11:34Hey, Robert.
11:35Good morning.
11:36This is my talk call.
11:37Two quick points.
11:38Shout out to Mike Penix.
11:40In totality, he hasn't played a lot of games.
11:43But it's good to see him learning in real time on the field like he's processing things and he's not
11:49putting the ball in the harm's way.
11:50Good job, kid.
11:52And second, there's a premium for guys like where the Vita Veyes and the Vitz Wilfork, you know, kind of
12:00looking guys.
12:01If Jeff Olbrick can get his hands on a Vitz Wilfork-looking dude, one of those big uglies, I think
12:08that'll, you know, really shore up our run defense game.
12:14I know Coach Brick is short a lot of pieces right now.
12:17But if we can get one of those big, ugly nasties in the middle, man.
12:21Well, we're not as small as we were, thanks for the phone call.
12:25Thanks to going out and grabbing one-year guys.
12:28Obviously, the trade for Mason Smith and, you know, watching some of what we've had to do up front with
12:35one-year contracts.
12:37And obviously, Jeff Olbrick is a big part of that.
12:39So, listen, I think we have a really good defensive coordinator.
12:42I think we have the best player in the NFL in Bijan Robinson, who's at the running back position.
12:47I think Drake London is top, I don't know, dude, top five receiver.
12:51He's not below that, right?
12:54I think top seven is fair.
12:57Who's better than Drake London right now, obviously?
13:00Jamar Chase, Justin Jefferson, Jackson Smith, and Jigba.
13:04You know, Justin Jefferson of late certainly doesn't stack up, didn't have a great team yesterday.
13:08Okay, then I'd put T. Higgins in there.
13:10Did you see what Zay Flowers did yesterday for the Baltimore Ravens?
13:13I'd take Drake over Kay Flowers.
13:16I'd take him up there with T. Higgins.
13:18I mean, T. Higgins got Jamar Chase on the other side.
13:20Yeah.
13:20That's a big advantage.
13:21My point is, you know, if you're trying—
13:22He is a very good—
13:23Like, yeah, like, we have some very good players.
13:25A bona fide top ten receiver.
13:26Like, the Miami Dolphins just won.
13:28I don't think anybody's like, oh, they have very good players.
13:30You're like, no.
13:31Right.
13:31The Jets don't have very good players.
13:33I think we've got better players than the Saints.
13:35I think we have a better roster than New Orleans.
13:37Did you see the statistic about the New York Jets' final two minutes of the first half?
13:41Aaron Glenn in his 24 games as the head coach of the New York Jets.
13:46I think their cumulative score in the last two minutes of the first half through 24 games
13:51is like 106 to 7.
13:54They're being outscored.
13:56Did you hear him trying to explain—
13:56When Mike Tomlin was asked, what would you do in that scenario?
13:59He said, I would work on my two-minute offense and defense until the problem was solved.
14:04Yeah.
14:04He goes, literally, that's all we do.
14:06That is something that you cannot have happen.
14:08Well, Mike Greenberg, you know, he's a huge Jets fan.
14:10He literally called for Aaron Glenn to be fired on Twitter,
14:12which is for a guy that essentially works for the NFL.
14:15Yeah, interesting.
14:16Right?
14:17I mean, you know, they're all combined there.
14:19He just—he lost his mind.
14:20Wow.
14:21Hey, 404-726-0929, give me a compelling reason that we are a good football team,
14:28that we should win the division,
14:30and that we should have a great chance to get to the second round of the playoffs.
14:34I'm easily convinced.
14:35But you've got to lay it out there.
14:37I'm still going to tell you we're 3-4 and we're underdogs this weekend.
14:40So how do you assess who the heck are we?