ATLANTA – Following Atlanta's 26-13 win over the Los Angeles Rams, Falcons coach Dan Quinn was asked if his team had just played their most complete performance of the year.
Quinn's answer?
"I think so, and the reason I say that is we knew for us to be at our best, there couldn't be any except-for plays and almost-this or two out of three had played well," Quinn said.
The Falcons' special teams unit set the tone from the get-go. The defense held the No. 1 scoring offense to just 13 points – their third lowest all year -- and the offense sustained drives and scored put points on the board.
You often hear the following statement when it comes to the NFL playoffs: It all comes down to which team gets hot at the right time. And for the Falcons, it appears to be right now.
Quinn said after the Falcons' loss to the Saints in Week 16, he felt a shift in his team's mindset.
In that game, the Falcons were held to just six points, committed 10 penalties for 91 yards and two turnovers.
Since then, the Falcons are plus-five in the turnover margin and have scored 20 points more in their previous two wins.
"This year's team, we probably started our push, I felt like a shift in our team probably two weeks ago, and that was after the loss to New Orleans and in our preparation for Carolina and our preparation this week, there's been a shift that's taken place with our team," Quinn said. "Their readiness, their mindset, their belief, their support of one another, it's really at a strong point for this 2017 team, and we'll need that kind of mindset again this week."
The Falcons have won seven of their last 10 games but they're not looking back.
This team is only focused on what's in front of them and that's a road matchup with the No. 1-seeded Philadelphia Eagles.
"It's this week, this matchup, and that's all it is," Quinn said. "When you allow yourself to put your focus just into that, I think that's a good thing, and that's certainly where our mind and our head will be."
