Head Coach Mike Smith
Opening Statement:
"I think for the second straight week, I felt like our defense played a very solid game with a very solid effort. I thought that our defensive staff did a great job putting together a game plan and our players went out and executed it. I believe we held the Bills to 169 yards total offense and had 40 yards rushing. It was very good to see us go out and play. I thought our offense and special teams played well also. We played very, very hard and we got the outcome that we wanted."
Q: Can you talk about the play of Matt Ryan today?
A: "Matt had his third game where he had three touchdown passes. I thought that we got into the no-huddle and we were able to get a score out of that. I think he threw for 250 yards. Matt had a disadvantage in terms of practice time. We have to manage him at this point in time in the season with his toe. He took very limited reps but I thought he came out and ran the offense very well."
Q: Can you talk about some of the guys that had to step into different roles today?A: "In terms of special teams, it was a very interesting day on the sideline in terms of getting guys prepared. Kroy Biermann had to step up and kickoff for us. We have a little kicking contest and our guys like to show their skills off on Friday afternoons all through the season. Kroy won the opportunity to do that by his kicking on Friday afternoons throughout the season. Matt (Ryan) had to come in and hold. We had Chris Redman in the bullpen if we were in a punt situation. Unfortunately for Chris he didn't get a chance to show us his punting skills, but we had him prepared and we were in four down territory and did not have to punt the ball in the second half of the game."
Q: Can you talk about the interception of Chris Owens against Terrell Owens?A: "For Chris to get his first NFL interception was a big moment for Chris and a big play for him, but I thought there were a number of young guys on our football team that grew up today. Brent Grimes continues to progress. He's had two interceptions in three games. Lawrence Sidbury scored the defensive touchdown for us. Thomas DeCoud continues to play well. Vance Walker was upfront. We had a lot of young guys that are really starting to contribute, especially on the defensive side of the football."
Q: Talk about Roddy White's big day.
A: "It was a big day for Roddy. I think it's his third consecutive season individually to have 1,000 yards in reception yards.. I think he had 8 catches for 140 yards. He had some clutch catches. He had some third down and fourth down catches, and those are really important. We had to go for it a time or two and he made a couple of very big plays on third and fourth down. Roddy continues to play at a high level for us."
Defensive End Kroy Biermann
Q: Talk about the kicking performance today.
A: "We do a little bit of stuff during the week for fun and competitions during practice and after practice. They saw that I kind of had a little ability, and I did a little bit at high school. A couple guys went down and I just had to step up and do the best that I could. I credit my kickoff cover guys, they were flying down there and really made up for some of the wild kicks that were going on down there. It was a great performance overall."
Q: Were you surprised how far the first kick went?
A: "I wanted to boot it down there, and get it as far as I could; so they could get down there and get a tackle inside the 20. That's what happened, it's pretty exciting."
Q: What were you thinking while looking at the ball before your first kick?
A: "I wanted to get my timing down and just get a hold of the ball. I didn't want to kick it out of bounds. I just wanted to get it down the field so my guys could go down there and make a tackle."
Q: Did you know that you might be a backup in a situation like this?
A: "It just came up during the game. Two guys went down, and we were in the huddle. They asked if I could do it and I said yeah. It was just a credit to the guys out on the field that helped me out."
Defensive End Lawrence Sidbury
Q: Talk about the fumble.
A: "I really don't know what to say, it's my first touchdown. Chauncey knocked the ball out, it was kind of resting between his shoulder pads and me. I just grabbed it, turned around, slipped, and kept running."
Q: What was that moment like when you scored your first touchdown on this stage?
A: "I don't really know, it kind of happened so fast. I started running and I got in the end zone. I was kind of happy I didn't run to the sidelines. I had to go help the special teams cover the kick, so it was over kind of fast."
Q: How big were your eyes when you saw that ball coming?
A: "I think my eyes were bigger when I tried to get into the end zone. The goal line looked like the sideline. Everything was moving in slow motion."
Wide Receiver Marty Booker
Q: Thoughts on the offense.
A: "We put some good drives together. We put some things together and made some plays, especially down field. We did what we wanted to do."
Q: How important is the back-to-back winning seasons?
A: "Oh, of course. You always want to finish out on a strong note and have a winning season. I think, in my career, I have only three or four winning seasons. This is big, to get a chance to finish out strong, and build for next year.
Running Back Jason Snelling
Q: As a running back, talk about Sidbury's run to the goal line.
A: "That was pretty impressive. He left no doubt out there. He made a great play stripping the ball. He had a lot of track to get into the end zone. It was good, he looked really good."
Q: You've got a defensive lineman that's a kicker, a defensive lineman that's a running back. Are defensive lineman the best athletes on the team?
A: "They might be. Today they looked like they were. They did a heck of a job, especially Biermann coming in to kick. We did a good job. We made plays all around the field, from every position. It was a good win. We played a complete game. I'm proud of everybody."
Q: How pleased were you with the offensive effort?
A: "It was four quarters of playing today. A couple of drives we got stopped, but we were consistent today, and that was the big thing. Consistency we had on the offensive side of the ball lead to a lot of points. I'm really proud of how we worked today."
Q: How important is the back-to-back winning seasons as you go into the last game?
A: "It's real important. Every game we go into we want to get a victory. We have an opportunity to play one more game and get a win, and that is our game plan."
Wide receiver Roddy White
Q: What are your thoughts on your touchdown in the first half?
A: "Earlier in the week, we wanted to throw a "go route," early in the game. Last night, during our pre-game meetings, that was the first play out of our top 15 plays that work for our offense. Matt (Ryan) threw a good ball and I went up and got it. I just wanted to go out there, make a play on the ball and get our team to a fast start."
Q: Throughout the seasons, you've been very valuable to this team. What are your thoughts on your contributions?
A: "I try to go out every game, and do whatever I can to help this team win. I try to go out there and perform at a high level every time I step on the field. With all of the injuries that we've experienced this year, my team depended on me and Tony (Gonzalez) to go out there and make plays. Even though we didn't make the playoffs, we're going to try to finish the season with a winning record. Hopefully we can go to Tampa and get us a win, and use that to build upon for next year."
Q: What are your thoughts on your second touchdown during the game?
A: "Matt (Ryan) threw me a good ball. I ran a quick 'out route.' Matt threw me that ball all week at practice, so I was definitely prepared when the time came for me to make a play."
Q: What are your thoughts of getting another 1,000 yard season?
A: "I proud of it but I want to continue to help this team win, continue to build my career and continue to perform at a high level. I want to go out there, do my job, and do what is expected of me. If the 1,000 yard seasons keep coming, then they keep coming."
Linebacker Mike Peterson
Q: What are your thoughts on the defense?
A: "Our performance today was near perfect. The only way it would have been more perfect, is if we would have kept them from making a field goal. If you look at the points, you could say we had a perfect game. Overall, if we can come out with a win, I'll take those three points."
Q: Throughout the game, it looked as if the defense had a mentality focused on bringing pressure to the quarterback. What are your thoughts?A: "Yes. We were very aware of the quarterback situation. We wanted to stop the run and have an opportunity to go after the quarterback on third down."
Q: Are you worried about losing Kroy Biermann to special teams forever?
A: "I teased him during the game. I told him that I think he bought himself three more years in this league. He's a young guy, and the more you can do, the longer you can stay playing this game."
Q: Although you didn't make the playoffs I notice that this team still plays with a purpose. What are your thoughts?
A: "There is no quitting on this team. When it comes to the playoffs and making the post season, things didn't go as well as we planned but we can still finish with a winning season. I'm sure the fans and the organization can be very happy about that."
Quarterback Matt Ryan
Opening Statement:
"I thought it was a great team effort starting with the defense. They held the Buffalo Bills to a total of three points. Our special teams did a good job of field position. And our offense made plays when we had the opportunities. Again, it was a good win and everybody is going to enjoy it. We will get back to work and finish the season out on strong."
Q: On the first possession of the game.
A: "The important thing is that we had great field position. Our defense started out strong by getting off the field quick and giving our offense a great opportunity to manufacture points. Wide receiver Eric Weems and the special teams produced a good punt return, and we also liked the matchup with wide receiver Roddy White once we got the ball. Roddy has made some awesome plays for the team this season and today was no different. Our first score was designed for Roddy to make a play down the field."
Q: On home-field advantage and the recent success playing at home:
A: "As a team, it is something we want to keep going. We feel like over the past two years, we've created a home-field advantage and that is a credit to our fans as well. They play a big part in our success at home. One example is the incredible noise in which they generate when opposing offenses are on the field. The biggest thing is to make it is long-term, however. We did a good job of starting it and we have to make sure to finish strong in that regard."
Q: What have you learned most from your rookie season to this season?
A: "I would say that everything is a learning process. Coach Smith preaches to us all the time that there is a lot to learn week after week. I learned a lot this year and will learn as much next week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I feel that if I can end the season a better quarterback than I started, then it will be a successful year. And that has not changed in year two. It will continue to be a growing process."
MORE FALCONS-BILLS COVERAGE:
GAMEDAY LIVE:Complete Falcons-Bills coverage from AF.com * GAME RECAP:John Manasso takes a look at some of the key moments * GAME CENTER:Stats and more from NFL.com * FIRST TAKE:Daver Archer chats with some of the key contributors * MULTIMEDIA:Highlights and more player interviews from Falcons-Bills * J. MIKE'S MISSIVES:Additional thoughts from the AF.com Managing Editor * THE BEAT BLOG:Quarter-by-quarter updates from AF.com's John Manasso * GAME NOTES:Official game notes from the Falcons-Bills game * TRANSCRIPTS:Postgame thoughts from Falcons players | Bills * INACTIVES:Game inactives and starters from Sunday afternoon * PHOTOS:Images from the Falcons 31-3 win over the Buffalo Bills * FORUMS:Talk about the game with other fans on FalconsLIFE
