FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – "Consistency" is what Falcons head coach Dan Quinn is looking for from his team following two home losses. With every game – win or loss – there comes an opportunity to assess the tape, re-group and turn the page.
That's exactly what the Falcons (3-2) will do.
So, what did we learn from the Falcons following their Week 6 performance ahead of a "Sunday Night Football" matchup with the New England Patriots (4-2)?
A sign of more explosive plays to come on offense?
Prior to Atlanta's bye in Week 5, Quinn said he wanted to see more explosive plays from his offense.
We caught a glimpse of that on Sunday when quarterback Matt Ryan found wide receiver Marvin Hall down the field on a 40-yard touchdown play. Quinn said it was a play that the offense had been working on in practice in hopes to create more explosive plays by giving Ryan the chance to throw the ball deep.
"It's one we've been working hard on in practice where we can connect on some of our deep plays, because that's where the explosive plays come from on your play-action," Quinn said. "I thought that was a good sign of things ahead because of our ability to connect on those."
Through five games, the Falcons' have 39 explosive plays on offense. Atlanta tracks explosive plays by the following: Passes over 15 yards and runs over 20 yards.
Quinn: We need more possessions, more time on offense
Atlanta's offense was shut out in the second half of Sunday's game – the first time all season. While many factors go into that, one noticeable trend in the loss was the limited amount of time the Falcons' offense was on the field.
The Falcons had a total of four offensive possessions in the second half, a number Quinn wants increased moving forward.
"I knew this game, certainly when I've gone back, we just didn't get enough possessions this last week," Quinn said. "We had a long drive right off the bat. I think we had a possession where it went three-and-out right in the third quarter, but we need possessions and we need time."
Schweitzer's play is improving
After taking over the starting right guard job for the Falcons in Week 1, Wes Schweitzer's arrow is trending upwards.
Schweitzer didn't allow a hit or sack on Ryan on Sunday against a tough Miami defensive front.
As expected, it's been a progression for Schweitzer who didn't play a snap for the Falcons in 2016. Schweitzer has seen a number of talented defensive lines through the first five games and his play of late is encouraging to Quinn.
"I was pleased actually that we did better on third downs in this game than we had previously against who I think is a really good front," Quinn said. "Wes Schweitzer I thought played a really good game. It was tough matchup all along the spot with no sacks and no hits. We talked about that early in the year. In his first game, he had a tough first outing. For him, he was a guy that we don't talk about on the offensive line. I thought he got after it and was playing physical."
Quinn wants to get Jones more touches
When Quinn was asked if he was happy with how often Julio Jones was getting the ball, he quickly responded by saying, "No."
Jones has 25 catches for 267 yards on 38 targets which isn't enough according to Quinn. Jones has yet to find the end zone this year.
"No. The reason I say that is he's such a factor," Quinn said of Jones. "We've got to get more possessions, more plays. I think that's more a byproduct of getting Julio the ball more. It's not where he needs the ball more. We need more plays so he can get the ball more. It's not an example of we're comfortable playing plays in the 50's. We need more plays and better stops to create more opportunities to make plays. No, I'm not [satisfied]."
