The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Panthers’ transition won’t sway Falcons’ focus
FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons are not expecting the Carolina Panthers to overhaul their football schemes after the firing of coach Ron Rivera on Tuesday.
Interim coach Perry Fewell will implement some changes, but the Falcons (3-9) are anticipating that the Panthers (5-7) will stay close to their fundamental tenets Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. But there’s definitely an element of intrigue.
“You don’t know what to expect,” Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan said. “You might see a few different things here and there. Maybe a few changes on the defensive side. ... When you’re in that situation, when you’re not quite sure what to expect, it’s about knowing your own plan and making sure that you’re on top of your own rules.”
Falcons coaches spent most of Monday and Tuesday studying film on the Panthers and their tendencies. When Rivera was fired Tuesday afternoon, they were preparing their game plan to present to the team Wednesday.
“They’ve got a rock-solid program, foundation and philosophy of how you do things. Much like when a new quarterback comes in, there will be some tweaks to it, but not wholesale (changes),” Falcons coach Dan Quinn said about switching gears.
The Falcons, who won the teams’ previous meeting 29-3 on Nov. 17, will prepare for some “un-scouted” looks Sunday. “What it makes us do is make sure that we are on top of our stuff from a communication standpoint,” defensive passing-game coordinator Jerome Henderson said. “To make sure that we are playing just sound, good football.”
The preparation cycle will shift slightly.
“When you lose your head coach, you just never know what a team is going to do,” safety Ricardo Allen said. “But you kind of know what the players can do. So, that’s where you’ll take more of the focus.”
Another move for the Panthers was offensive coordinator Norv Turner moving to assistant head coach and Scott Turner, his son, taking over as offensive coordinator.
The Panthers’ offense has revolved around running back Christian McCaffrey. “Maybe they’ll have some new stuff on offense for us defensively,” Falcons linebacker Foye Oluokun said. “We’re going to prepare for them the same way. McCaffrey is a dynamic player. We are going to find ways to stop him and keep them out of the end zone.”
Fewell said he will stick with Kyle Allen as the quarterback. Rookie Will Grier, who was drafted in the third round, will remain in a backup role.
“They have full belief in their system; certainly with Norv and Scott, I would think that on more than one occasion they’ve talked football around the dinner table,” Quinn said.
The Falcons made four interceptions in the previous meeting, three in Carolina’s red zone. “It really was one of the things that I think was the difference in the game, taking those points off the board,” Henderson said. “Obviously, we’d like to do that again.”
Quinn was in contact with Rivera on the day he was terminated. “I respect Ron quite a bit,” Quinn said. “I texted him that I’ll certainly miss you this weekend, competing against you. Even prior to my time in Atlanta, going against his teams, I admired the toughness that they played with. (The games) were always hard-fought.
“I expect that to be the case again coming up this weekend. He is definitely someone in our profession that I regard highly.”