HEAD COACH MIKE VRABEL

PRESS CONFERENCE
October 29, 2025

Q: Why was it important to extend Marcus Jones at this time?

MV: It's something that we've talked about and wanted to – I think he embodies everything that we're looking for here in a player, in a teammate, on the field, in the community. It's something that we were excited about doing and glad that he wanted to get that done and be with us moving forward.

Q: Mike Smith said last month that Keion White was going to be a big part of what you guys do. Why did you feel it was important to move on now?

MV: I think that with just the timing of everything and where we're at as a team, we felt like it was the right thing to do. We've got a lot of guys in that room, and we just felt like at this particular time, to make those moves that we made with him and Kyle [Dugger]. Really going to make our focus here against the Falcons, a team that we don't know much about, haven't played in four or five years. So, we wish Keion the best, wish Kyle the best, appreciate their professionalism and added some other guys here to the roster, too.

Q: Mike, specifically on Keion, I know he played in the last preseason game, you gave him a shot there. He's also someone who started camp as kind of a first team, starter role. Why do you think ultimately it just didn't work out with him?

MV: No, I'm not trying to figure those things out. I'm trying to prepare the team for the Falcons and wish him the best of luck. We have a huge challenge here. Again, taking on this great skill team offensively with a lot of speed and home-run-hitting ability. Defense, it hardly gives up a lot of yards; it's certainly tough throwing the football against them. A.J. Terrell [Jr.]'s having another fantastic year. [Jessie] Bates [III], if you make a mistake, it may be a turnover. A lot of young rushers. So again, those are the things that I'm focused on right now.

Q: Mike, to that end, what kind of challenges does Bijan Robinson present?

MV: Many, many. I think if there's any crack, he's going to test our edge. He's going to test our wall, and he's going to test everything we do about having guys swarming to the football. There have been some good defenses that he's been able to gain yards against. In their three victories, they averaged 186 yards a game on the ground, and it's not like they're manufacturing a lot. Not a lot of those are the quarterback; it's Bijan and [Tyler] Allgeier.

Q: What have you seen from Drake [Maye], maybe before the snap, after the snap, that's helping him have success with the deep ball?

MV: Well, I think there's a lot of trust there. I think it starts with trust, just being able to put it in a position where those guys can make a play. So again, I think that there's, one, trust, then it's location. Then, guys are doing a good job down the field. I mean, we had one that was taken away earlier in New Orleans with a tough decision there from the referee, but that's how it goes. Even Rhamondre's [Stevenson] the other day, Rhamondre comes down with the ball, it's just a little wide. So again, I think the guys that he's been throwing to have helped him, and I think he stays patient. I don't think he panics and launches it or throws it 7 yards out of bounds, but I think there's been a lot of improvement from training camp and seeing some of those passes. I don't think there were as many completed in the preseason as there were in the regular season. I'm glad we saved them for the regular season. So, I think there's a lot of things that go into it. Certainly, when you do those longer developing routes, there has to be a good pocket for the quarterback to step up in, and I think that that's been the case as well.

Q: With things going so well for you guys, obviously, five straight wins and a lot of handy wins. Does it almost challenge you in a way to avoid complacency setting in with your team?

MV: That's what we're always trying to do is not allow these, what have you, good times, soften us up mentally and just let things slip that we didn't – things we weren't doing earlier in the season or the way that we prepared, the things that we want to believe in as a team. So, it's always a good reminder, especially in this league where anything can happen. We talk about having an identity, and the identity doesn't care where you play, it doesn't care what time it is, and it doesn't care what the score is. It just, you either have it, or you don't.

Q: Even before the season started, you told us, and the players echoed, that you wanted to be a team who is stronger in the second half than first half of games and finished – I'm paraphrasing – but finished strong. Certainly, that's something we saw in last week's game. What do you think are the commonalities that have made this team stronger in that game than another?

MV: I think their conditioning. They're working during the week. They practice hard. As you get into the second half of the game, I don't think that we panic based on where the score is or who's getting the ball. I think we've adjusted well. I think our players, again, even little things, maybe the speed of the Browns and the defense. I think that's hard to recreate early in the game, where there may be one run that we had early in the game that didn't look too hot. Come back in it later in the game, and you see linemen getting off on the backer that's running through just a half a step sooner and able to get the block and get the back through, as opposed to maybe earlier in the game, it was a little faster than what we had been able to show them in practice. So, the players do a good job of adjusting to some of those things. It can still be better; it's still too sloppy in some situations, and we'll need to be great and much better in the red zone if we're able to get down there this week.

Q: Mike, Michael Penix [Jr.] was obviously out last week, and he'll have some uncertainty to deal with. I think he's going to be out there today. I think Atlanta's just doing a walkthrough. Between him and Kirk Cousins, do you have to prepare fully for both guys?

MV: Well, I mean, there's more mobility and which hand you're going to use to match. That was the thing I was – I thought we did a nice job getting our hand on the football last week We had 8 PBUs, and we got a couple at the line of scrimmage in the pass rush situation, and those usually end up getting intercepted. So, we'll practice both ways, and we'll have to make sure that one's a little bit more mobile than the other, and then be ready to go. I think that the concepts are similar, but there'll be some different play styles that are different between obviously Michael and Kirk.

Q: When you're putting your game plan together, how much, if at all, do you take into account the officiating crew?

MV: No, I don't think that that's something – we remind them of some things, and maybe, whether it was last week with a crew who called a lot of line of scrimmage penalties and the things we talked about on Wednesday, starting early on about making sure that the receivers are checking, that they're looking over, they're looking at the foot. That the defensive linemen, if you think you're close, back up. I told them it's the same crew that we had in Miami and can explain to those things and say, 'Hey, whether you think you're in a neutral zone, with this particular crew, you probably are, and maybe you lined up the same way for three weeks, had a different crew and somebody called it differently.' So, we talk about those things, but as far as game planning, I don't think that that's something that would go into it. It's more reminders and about play style, things that we have to do and what their mechanics are.

Q: Khyiris Tonga been instrumental in helping with the running game this season. Considering you are going up against Bijan this week, what have you seen from him this season? Why is it that he's so effective?

MV: Great teammate, first and foremost. Great person, love being around him. Plays square, plays with his hands, tries to control the blocker. Plays with great effort, and so those things usually help you at the line of scrimmage.

Q: Since things have been going so well with buy in, just chemistry on the team, was there any hesitation about the idea of shaking up the roster this week?

MV: Again, I'll remind you, we're eight games into what we feel like is a program that we want to build, and we have to continue to find ways to improve, figure it out and get it right, and that's all we're trying to do. Whether that's having success early on in the season, mid-season or after the trade deadline, whatever that may be, I think we just have to continue to take that approach.

Q: How big of an opportunity is it now for people like Dell Pettus and Elijah Ponder?

MV: We ask everybody to prepare as a starter, whether they're on the practice squad or they're on the active roster. I know that those guys have been doing that, and we'll need everybody through this course of the season. So, that's important at every position.

Q: The Falcons' pass rush was near the top of the league in sack rate, time to pressure, blitz rate. I'm curious, who and what have you seen that's made them so effective this season?

MV: Well, they like to send five out of base. That's something that they like to do. I think that they're penetrating. I think [David] Onyemata has always been a really good player. Being able to just get guys on the edge, being able to get [Jalon] Walker back and seeing where they are and [Zach] Harrison with his length inside. He's kind of like a hybrid four-technique. I haven't seen him since he was in high school in Columbus. He's gone from like 200 pounds to now 290. That's just a unique matchup for an interior defensive lineman that kind of has that skill set who looks like an outside linebacker, but probably rushes inside. So, I think that's helped. They just are kind of getting it done by group. They play a lot of guys, and so by playing a lot of guys, you get their best, I would say, energy. There's some games and schemes, and other than that, it's usually 1-on-1, and guys are winning 1-on-1. So, that'll put a big premium for us up front when they get us into those five-down situations.

Q: Mike, they're also up there in terms of man coverage that they play. Is that just, again, a staple of, 'This is what we do, this is how we want to play,' or do you see that as the teams they face, it's a game plan, week-to-week thing?

MV: They do what they do. They have some wrinkles, but they also have corners. You throw it on Terrell, he's going to be really close to his guy. He's going to challenge and compete. The safeties, obviously, with Bates and his ability, but they put the backers in coverage, and then they all tackle well. It's a good tackling football team. So, they don't really give up a lot of big plays because of missed tackles. They're able to turn those catches – and have some space, maybe, in the middle of the field – into a 15-yard gain as opposed to a 25 or 30-yard gain because of the way they tackle.

Q: Do you like the way Drake handles the demands of that position, being the quarterback?

MV: From all accounts, I think fairly well. I mean, he's a pretty low-key guy, but you see him in the community. I think that whatever interest he has outside of football, he's helping the community and the kids. He was at the Halloween party last night; he's always involved in the Special Olympics. So again, I don't really monitor what he does a whole lot, but I know that he's a great representative of this organization.