Head Coach Mike Smith
(opening statement) "Today we struggled the majority of the football game at getting anything going offensively. We were behind the chains throughout the entire day. We had pressure on our quarterback, and he couldn't get comfortable. It was a tough day."
(on the offensive line and the pressure from the Ravens) "We had way too much pressure. Our quarterback was hit and sacked way too much. There were times where we really didn't have a chance to get the play off, and that's very difficult for a quarterback, and we have to do better with our protection."
(on whether they were getting beat with the Ravens' quickness or strength) "They won the line of scrimmage with both their strength and their quickness. They beat us cleanly, off the edge, a couple of times. And Matt [Ryan] was under duress with the pass rush."
(on losing players) "There are no excuses. You can talk about losing players, but everybody loses players. It's got to be the 'next man up' mentality. The next guy up has to step in and do the job. We have to step up and make those plays."
(on how they can help the offensive line) "There were times that we were helping, but you just can't help everybody. You have to do one or the other in those situations, unless you're trying to have two-man routes, and you can't do that. They physically won the line of scrimmage. There's no two ways about it."
(on whether DE Jonathan Massaquoi was a positive for the defense) "Yes he was. He put pressure on the quarterback and got a couple holding calls. It still felt like he left some sacks out there. The first drive we had the [pass interference penalty], which was an easy score for them. Defensively, I think he did some good things."
(on if they are any closer to finding answers to their problems) "Absolutely. Any time you watch the tape, and you know what's being called, and you know what guys are supposed to do, and you see improvement all week, taking what we do on the practice field into the game is not happening. We've had some good practices, and these guys are working their [butts] off, but ultimately, we're not getting the result that we want. We've got to get better, and guys have got to step up and make plays. They're in position to make plays, and they're not making plays. We have to do a better job with trying to manufacture that situation where they can use their skill set to the best of their ability."
(on the Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints losing today) "This division is going to be a competitive division every single time. It's our job to stop them [the Ravens] on defense, and it's our job to score points. They scored more points than us today, and that is the bottom line. That's my only concern. I'm not concerned about the Carolina Panthers, the New Orleans Saints or the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. We have to focus on the Atlanta Falcons, and together we will pull out of this."
(on being 2-5) "We have nine games left, and I know every man in that room and every coach in that room will work their [butts] off this week to get prepared to play the Detroit Lions. I have no doubt what the makeup of these football players and coaches and the organization we have in Atlanta. So I think it's a silly question."
(on the final Ravens touchdown) "I don't have any objections. [Head Coach] John [Harbaugh] coaches his football team. Their defense tried to stop us, and our defense tried to stop them. They called a play, we didn't stop them, and that's the end of it. That's the bottom line. Our job is to stop the opponent, and we didn't do it. It doesn't matter what the situation is or the score, that's what our job is."
WR Julio Jones
(on the team's offense) "We just couldn't get a rhythm going today, but that's on us. We've just got to correct that."
(on the Ravens' defense) "We can't control what the Ravens' D does. It's all about what we do, and we were just inconsistent today."
(on getting touches during the game) "Yes, I'm getting enough touches. We're just taking what the defense gives us. Today, Baltimore was just a better team than us. We didn't execute in certain situations, and they got the best of us today."
(on establishing momentum) "We can move the ball. We're just inconsistent. We get a drive going, and then it stalls. We make a mistake or something. We were shooting ourselves in the foot today."
(on using the screen pass) "We knew they were really aggressive up front. Just to slow that pass rush down, we went to the screen game."
(on the game) "There's nothing really stopping us but us. We haven't been executing. We get drives going, and then we stall. We've got to fix that here."
(on finding the answers on offense) "We've just got to keep working. We've got to keep believing. It doesn't matter what anyone else says. It's what we do here, and we've got to keep working. We've got to trust each other and trust the process, and eventually it will turn around for us."
DE Jonathan Massaquoi
(on the defense today) "I think the defense played together. I feel, collectively as a group, we did some great things. But a couple tweaks here and there, and we'll be back on pace and winning, and I think the defense played great today. I feel as though we executed a lot of things, and I feel that we can ascend as a group and become better, and that's what we're going to do, go back to the basics, go back to the drawing board and get ready for the Detroit Lions."
(on his play today) "My play was mediocre. I didn't finish on those sacks. I felt as though I could have done more. I just have to prep myself better for this week going into Detroit."
(on the road struggles) "We're our own enemy. It's nothing about what's going on on the road. I feel as if we have the best team in the NFL, and it's all about us tuning into that and carrying it out on the road. Being on the road is not an easy environment to be in, so we've got to continue to acclimate ourselves. There's only a few more games left in the season. We need to continue the fight and get better."
(on the rush defense from last week to this week) "No improvement. Hey, we got after the quarterback last week. We got after the quarterback today, and we showed improvement. We worked hard as a defense. We're in a place right now where we can ascend to the sky. We're our worst enemy. You've got to give Baltimore their due. They were the better team today, and we've got to move forward."
QB Matt Ryan
(on facing the Ravens pass rush) "Coming in the game we knew they had a very good defense. Their front seven is outstanding. We just didn't do a great job making plays. We had some opportunities, but we didn't make the plays we needed to make. When you're facing defense like that you need to take advantage of your chances."
(on the missed fourth down plays) "From where we were on the field, we had good plays called. Smitty [Mike Smith] made the right calls, but it just didn't work out. Those are the plays we've got to make."
(on the Ravens defensive pressure) "That's why they are a really good defense. They put a lot of pressure on us. They do a great job playing well within their schemes."
(on Atlanta's offensive struggles) "We need to worry about this coming week. We need to prepare better, practice better and play better. We know what to do, but we haven't done it. I think everybody knows we need to play better across the board. Everybody on the offense, the lineman, the tight ends, wide receivers, running backs and quarterbacks need to get better together."
(on where the team goes from here) "Right now we are behind the eight ball, and all kinds of things can happen. We have the right people in the locker room, the right leaders and the right coaches to turn this around. As ugly as it is at 2-5 we're still in the mix in our definition, we just have to get better."
(on playing near his hometown of Philadelphia) "It's just a short ride down the turnpike from Philadelphia. So I had a bunch of family and friends here routing for us."
(on his conversations with Joe Flacco) "I've known Joe for a long time, before the game we just said hello and talked about our families for a minute. After the game, I told him he played a really good game and is having a great season. I just wished him well as the season goes on."
LB Paul Worrilow
(on playing near his hometown) "I had tons of people in the stands and it was great to see them."
(on the defense performance) "We did some good things and we did some things that weren't so good. A couple of plays really hurt us. We did force three turnovers and that was good, but giving up a field goal right before the half really hurt us. We should've played better there."
(on whether the Ravens offense did anything surprising) "They did a lot of things that we expected, but they had a lot of different looks. We were prepared for them but we didn't execute."
(on where the defense goes from here) "We will learn from this game and get better. We have a very short week because we're going to London to play Detroit. Hopefully we will learn from this game and get better."
CB Robert Alford
(on today's loss) "There are always things that we can improve on. We'll come back next week after a week of preparation for London and see how we can beat the Lions. We'll need to watch film, see how we gave up the big plays and how we can improve on it."
(on his first interception) "It was just a good play call by [defensive coordinator] coach [Mike] Nolan. I went out there and executed and just expected to do it before the play happened. I praise the D-line and the coaching staff on the play call for that one."
(on his second interception) "It was a man coverage. I saw him try to throw the ball to the tight end, and I came off my man and made a good catch."
C James Stone
(on his performance) "There are definitely going to be some things I can do better. I just need to make sure we're on the same page. I can learn from this."
(on the feeling of taking over at the center position) "It was time to get out there [and] do my job. That's why we're all out here, to play football, go out there with those guys, and play at the highest level I can."
(on the Ravens' front seven) "They've got a very tough and talented front seven. So, it was good to have experienced guys next to me and try to work through it."
(on offensive line performance this season) "It's been rough. We've had guys going down and things of that nature. I feel like, as an offensive line, that we're positive right now. And we're focused on getting better each week."
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RB Steven Jackson
(on today's offensive performance) "It's frustrating. We know how talented we are. We know the potential that we can play up to. Whenever you can't get into a groove and we can't get things started, it's very frustrating."
(on returning to practice) "Having a good week of practice is never the issue with this team. We always have a good week of practice. We have to learn how to put it all together for Sunday."
(on the lack of third-down conversions) "It comes down to executing and, for whatever reason, they did a really good job of stopping us, not allowing us to put together long drives. When you go three-and-out, you can't get into a groove."
(on beating Tampa impressively then struggling in recent games) "There's only one way to put it back together, and that's to stick together. All the men in the locker room – coaches and players – need to stick together, remain positive, and trust that we'll get out of this rut."
WR Roddy White
(on today's game) "We have to play more consistent on offense. We've got to get off to faster starts. We're not playing efficient football, and it's costing us right now. I've got to fix my problem right now. I'm dropping way too many passes. We're not a team that can play behind the sticks and convert on third-and-longs. We've got to play ahead of the sticks, and we're not doing that right now. It's frustrating because we're going out there and digging holes for ourselves, and we're not getting out of them. It's hurting our defense, and it's hurting our team. Especially the offensive unit being as explosive as we can be, but we're getting behind the chains, and it's hurting our defense because we're keeping them out there too long. Today, they got us three turnovers and played pretty efficient football, but the longer they stay out there, the more opportunities the other team has to score. We've got to hold the ball. We've got to convert on third down. We've got to play full halves and go out there and be a better football team. Right now, we're just not that good on football."
