FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Although the Atlanta Falcons have shown flashes on defense, giving up explosive plays continues to be an issue weighing them down.
Heading into Sunday's matchup with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, the Falcons have surrendered 26 pass plays of 20-plus yards, which is the fourth most in the NFL, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Such explosive plays plagued the Falcons in a 33-30 overtime loss this past Sunday.
Of course it didn't sit well with Pro Bowl cornerback Desmond Trufant.
"It's definitely frustrating," Trufant said. "Nobody is going to come save us. It's us. We have to stand up at the end of the day."
Trufant has stood up and taken more of a leadership role, which makes sense to come from the team's best defensive player. He realizes some of the young players, such as rookie starters De'Vondre Campbell, Deion Jones, Keanu Neal, are still learning on the fly. He simply wants to lift them up.
"Just learn from your mistakes and keep pushing," Trufant said of what he tells the young players. "You can't let it get you down. You use this feeling we have and you use that to motivate you and push you to get even better. It's still a long season. We're still in a good spot."
Campbell was one who freely admitted making a costly mistake against the Chargers and wideout Tyrell Williams, which led to a 49-yard pass play on the game's first possession, setting up a quick touchdown for San Diego.
"That was all me," said Campbell, who can run with anyone. "I took a step up and the guy got behind me. It was just bad technique by me that I've got to correct. It wasn't anything special that they did. ... We just have to be technique-sound at all times. It's the NFL. And if you make the mistakes, it comes back to haunt you in the end."
Falcons coach Dan Quinn isn't blaming any defensive collapses on youth. He believes guys such a Campbell and Jones, who missed a key tackle on Chargers running back Melvin Gordon before a score, have had enough reps in the system to get adjusted despite missing games due to injuries. At the same time, Quinn appreciates having Trufant to guide younger players along.
"Well, you nailed it on Trufant: His leadership has totally taken off," Quinn said. "I’ve been so impressed by that. His attitude and the way he talks to his guys who are the defensive backs, he’s got swagger and attitude to how he plays. ... He’s a hell of a competitor, and if there’s a way that he can help, like pull somebody with him, I can promise you he’ll do that."
Trufant will need to rally the troops this week against Rodgers, always a dangerous playmaker despite having a down year in numbers. In five career games against the Falcons (3-2 record), Rodgers has completed 72.1 percent of his passes while averaging 349.2 passing yards with 12 touchdowns and one interception.
It helps that the Falcons have discovered their pass rush, with Vic Beasley Jr. tied for fourth in the league with 6.5 sacks. But the defense as a whole will be tested, particularly regarding yards allowed after the catch. Rodgers is throwing shorter but completing more passes this season with four-plus-receiver sets.
"The crazy thing about this defense is it's built not to give up explosive plays," free safety Ricardo Allen said. "I didn't know that stats [26 pass plays of 20-plus yards]. That's actually a really bad stat. If we don't give up big plays, teams can't just methodically beat us down the field because we get the ball out, we fight, we get tips and we get overthrows. We work, man.
"To stop this, we have to really detail our work. People have to do their jobs. We have to go home and study film and know who they're targeting. We have to make our plays when they come to us."
Quinn is confident the defense will improve despite someone obvious holes in the Cover 3. The Falcons are able to play more man coverage with Campbell now back from a serious ankle injury. And Neal has shown flashes of solid coverage from his strong safety spot.
"Yeah, you better [correct mistakes] because [Rodgers] knows how to attack in a very big way as well," Quinn said. "These are not errors that have been repeated. That’s what I like about this group. Alright, here’s an error that has to be fixed and we shine a light right on it and get that problem adjusted. We’ll work like crazy to get our football exactly right for this weekend.
"We know especially defensively the way Aaron can attack. Especially they’re a very good third-down team and how quickly he can get rid of the ball, we’d better be on point."