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The Atlanta Falcons lost to the Carolina Panthers on Thursday Night Football in large part because their offense failed to put together scoring drives. They lost 25-15 to one of the worst teams in the league after managing only three points in the first half and not scoring their second touchdown until very late in the game. Marcus Mariota did not have his best overall game but Arthur Smith still gave him the chance to lead the Falcons the entire game.
According to Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk, Smith did not consider benching Mairota during the Falcons' loss to the Panthers but also did not definitively say who will start in their next game. Instead, he made the focus of the game his entire team's performance.
“I know those are popular narratives, those are the easy questions to ask,” Smith said. “But as a whole football team, we’ve got to do a better job, starting with myself…You can make it about the quarterback, how about the team? We had an opportunity at the end of the fourth quarter the last two weeks, and a lot of different ways, and a lot of different phases where we’ve got to get better.”
Mariota completed 19 of his 30 pass attempts for 186 yards, two touchdowns and an interception while rushing for a team-best 43 yards. The Falcons have gone with Mariota over rookie quarterback Desmond Ridder all season long and Smith does not seem likely to change that.
