Head Coach Mike Smith
Q: Opening remarks.
A: “I’m very proud of our football team. To go out and play the way they did today, they had fun today playing the game. We ran the ball extremely well, which is something that we talked about doing from the very beginning. We had a team record with 318 yards rushing. Michael Turner set an individual rushing record with 220 yards. Those are very positive. The team played extremely hard. There are some things that we want to make sure we address. We made it a little bit closer than we wanted to. I know as a first game, there are always going to be things that we’re going to want to correct not only with the players, but the coaches as well. We wanted a fast start and I thought that we did that. Our young quarterback operated extremely well within the system. The defense made some critical stops when they had too. When you run the football like that, then you have some guys that are blocking. Our offensive line blocked well. Our receivers were part of that equation as well when they were blocking down field. Individually on the defensive side of the ball, John Abraham showed what he could do with having three sacks.”
Q: Can you talk about the third play of the game?
A: “We had talked about scripting the first 15 plays. Mike (Mularkey) and his staff do a wonderful job of putting together how we want to start the game. It really fell right into place. We got the look that we wanted to. Matt (Ryan) was able to deliver the ball and Michael (Jenkins) caught the ball and ran it very well. It was something that we had talked about as to how we wanted to start the game. It was a great way to see our rookie quarterback throw his first NFL pass.”
Q: Can you talk about Matt Ryan’s debut?
A: “He was very composed. When we were doing our due diligence way back with Thomas (Dimitroff) and his staff, we met with Matt (Ryan) and we knew from the get go that this guy had something about him. He was calm, cool and collected. We knew he had the skill set as far as throwing the football, running and operating an offense. I thought Matt did a very good job today. We all have things that we’ve got to work on. I want to preface that, not only the players but the coaches as well.”
Q: Was it your goal initially to run the ball that much?
A: “We’ve said from the very beginning that we are going to be a team that runs the football. When you run the football, you can dictate to a defense. Prior to the draft, we spoke about being a physical football team and on both sides of the line of scrimmage. We pretty much set a statement in training camp that that’s what we wanted to do. We rushed for 100 yards in all four of our preseason games. We really did a nice job today. Michael Turner and Jerious (Norwood) both ran extremely well.”
Q: How big was Lawyer Milloy’s interception?
A: “That was the turning point in the football game. They had gotten beyond the 35-yard line with the kickoff return. They were moving the football and Lawyer was able to intercept it and then get up and return it back to the plus side of the 50. At that point, we were able to get points off of that. The next time our offense had the ball, they were able to score. That was a 10-0 run which I thought was very pivotal in changing the game.”
Q: Can you talk about Jerious Norwood’s play?
A: “He came really close to breaking one on special teams. Jerious is a very gifted runner. He loves to run. He’s very fast. He has good vision. It’s a great combination to have those two types of running backs fueling our running game. Jerious is going to make some plays throughout the season.”
Q: Were you pleased with the energy of the crowd?
A: “The fans were really into the game especially early on. That really sets the tempo, edge and advantage for our football team. They did a nice job getting loud on third downs for our defense. We made some critical stops on third down and I think the fans had a lot to do with that.”
MORE FROM THE FALCONS-LIONS GAME:
- GAME CENTER: Stats and more in the NFL.com Game Center
- GAME RECAP: Turner leads Falcons to opening victory
- GAME NOTES: Official game notes from the Georgia Dome press box
- GAME BLOG: Live notes from Mod's FalconsLIFE blog
- J. MIKE'S BLOG: More coverage and thoughts from the AF.com managing editor
- TRANSCRIPTS: Head Coach Mike Smith | Falcons | Lions
- INACTIVES: Game inactives and starters from Falcons-Lions
- VIDEO: Head Coach Mike Smith | Michael Turner | Matt Ryan | Lawyer Milloy
- VIDEO: John Abraham | Sam Baker | Michael Jenkins
- NFL NETWORK: Ryan Highlights | Turner Highlights
- TAILGATE TOUR: Falcon Al tours the tailgates before the game
