Falcons’ Raheem Morris: ‘Those two young rushers set us off with a bunch of energy’

MINNEAPOLIS — Here’s what Falcons coach Raheem Morris had to say after the 22-6 win over the Vikings on Sunday:

Opening statement: “That’s my whole point. You know, getting a win. Obviously we came out and really challenged the (offensive) line last week. They responded in a big way. You know, coming out, being able to run football, being able to establish the run.

“The offense went out and did their thing and took over the time of time of possession and then the defense stepped up every single time, getting huge stops, major stops in critical situations. On special teams, those guys really stepped up. Seeing those kicks go through the uprights. Seeing those guys cover was absolutely outstanding. So I was fired up for those guys.”

On the play off the offensive and defensive lines: “Yeah, we’ll talk about the (offensive) line first. They went out there and ran the football right from the beginning. They were focused about doing it. The versatility of Zac Robinson, our coach, our coaches up front, talking about (Dwayne Ledford), talking about Nick Jones. You’re talking about all those guys working together …. getting into the lab, coming out of that thing, really, coming off a tough week from last week. I really can’t say enough about my coaches.

“I can’t say enough about my guys, all my guys up front. They really came out, Lindstrom right from the beginning. He’s our leader and he played with a lot of energy. He played with a bunch of energy. He fired me up. Then we talked about the kids up front, man, you gotta call them kids, because those young guys came out to play. Those two young rushers (Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr.) set us off with a bunch of energy.

“Our second year players, everybody wants to see last year with (Brandon) Dorlus and Ruke, they got things going. Zach got in the party. It was just fun to see those guys come together and become one. Along with (Kaden) Elliss. Along with Devine (Deablo). Along with the great calling about what Jeff (Ulbrich) was able to do. Those guys up front, Nate Olli, Jacquies Smith and those coaches up there deserve a lot of credit …. they did a great job today.”

On the kicker Parker Romo and the future at the kicker spot: “He stepped out tonight. All we’re going to talk about is tonight. We’ll worry about moving forward when you move forward tomorrow, and right now, he did a great job. He went out there and made the kicks. That’s all you can ask of the young man. He did what he’s required to do and we got a big-time win.”

On the four rookies on defense: “We talked about all throughout the off season, those guys have significant role for us. Whether if it was rushing or whether if it was ball hawking in the back end. Both of those were on display today.

“I can’t say enough about those young guys. I can’t say enough about what they’ve done. They want to know how to play football every single day. They learn how to live this NFL life every single day. They’re loving it. They’re embracing it. We got a whole team of people that help us.”

On the pass rush and if it’s contagious: “No, it’s just a lot of pressure from Mr. (Arthur) Blank. Those guys really respond when he comes down. Those guys really respond when we bring those guys in. All joking aside, we brought those guys in to do that. I don’t know if it’s contagious, but it’s fun. Those guys like to do it. We talked about having to stop the run early. Those guys really went out, bunkered down in the run. Forced those guys to be one dimensional.”

On challenging the offensive line: “I think it just started for me, just being honest with you guys, open and honest, being transparent, telling you guys that we did not play up to our standards last week. When I say that to you guys, I reiterate that to our team. I reiterate that to our owner so that everybody is informed about what we got to do. There is no hiding behind curtains. There’s no sugarcoating things with us. We just speak the truth. And that truth became a reality today, when those guys came out, responded in a big way. I knew they would.

“We got a bunch of grown men up there. You’re talking about Jake Matthews. You’re talking about Ryan (Neuzil). You’re talking about Chris Lindstrom. being our leaders. Along with Neuzil and Elijah (Wilkinson), everybody stepped. Man, those guys are grown men. They’ve got a lot of heart. They got a lot of character. They want to come and play.”

On Lindstrom asking for more runs on the key drive: “I think he did it after every single snap …. It was very, very physical. You want to stay away from him on the sidelines when he gets that way.”

On Bijan Robinson’s big day. Was that a part of the plan? “Yeah, that’s a part of the plan every single week. Bijan’s a dynamic player football player. He’s unbelievable. We got two outstanding backs and to watch those guys be able to rotate and execute like they did …. I don’t even know how many yards they had. I know it was a lot. I know it was enough to win the football game.”

On Ruke Orhorhoro and Brandon Dorlus: “We got the ability to mature. We got ability to grow up. We talked about it all last year. It is really hard as rookie to go play in the interior line. Those guys (didn’t play a lot) last year. We got those guys ready, and this year they are ready to go, and it is on full display. They’ve shown that at a very high level.

“I couldn’t be more excited about those guys out there. Always, those guys, those interior positions, they’re tough. When you’re talking about putting young guys out there, it’s hard to do. But these guys are doing it. Our coaching staff is willing to do it. These guys have done a great job. They came ready to go right from the beginning.”

On Michael Penix Jr. in a tough environment: “This is an unbelievable environment, particularly on those passing situations. So when that stuff happens, to watch the calm, cool, poise of Michael Penix go out there and lead us … we only had one timeout, I believe that we have to use because of the crowd. But other than that, man, Mike is absolutely outstanding. He is selfless. He’ll do whatever it takes to win. That is definitely what he gave us tonight.”

On how tough it was to get the kicker ready: “Honestly, we just competed. Every thing is hard in this league. We expect it to be hard. We just do it the right way right way. I’ve got a lot of respect for our special teams coach and what we do with our operation. I got a lot of respect for everything about our guys up front. We talk about Bradley the holder. Liam on the snap. All of those things matter. He was able to go out there and execute his job.”