Falcons DC Jeff Ulbrich on Facing Saints QB Tyler Shough: 'Starting to Click'

Coming off back-to-back overtime losses, the Atlanta Falcons are trying to find a way to turn their season around in Sunday's matchup against the New Orleans Saints.

The Saints are coming off a bye week and have picked up some momentum under rookie quarterback Tyler Shough who got his first win in Charlotte against the Carolina Panthers.

Meanwhile, the Falcons are in the midst of a five-game losing streak that has put them in a hole that will take a big ladder to climb out of. Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich said earlier in the week that he’s pleased with the character and resilience of his unit as it continues to stare adversity in the face.

“I can't speak [enough] to the character of this group," Ulbrich said. "It's just rare. You know, we live in a day and age of a lot of selfishness and self-promotion. It's typically a challenge in these moments. It's a challenge obviously just to go win a game and play your best. And when you've lost, like we've lost as of late, typically you spend half your time and energy just trying to get them focused, and trying to create some environment where there's some positivity.

"I haven't had to do that at all. They've been the driving force in regards to the positive energy and the focus and the detail. So, as long as we keep this attitude.”

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Just a week after giving up a franchise worst 323 rushing yards to the Indianapolis Colts, the Falcons patched up their issues against the run but wound up allowing Bryce Young to set a Carolina Panthers record for passing yards with 448.

With such a determined and high-energy unit, Ulbrich explained that his players sometimes put so much pressure on themselves that they end up overthinking and making mistakes.

“There's always calls that I could have made that would have helped. I could have put the guys in a better position to be successful. It starts with me. Then beyond that, it's just some really uncharacteristic fundamental flaws, errors that we don't make,” Ulbrich said. “And it's not me making an excuse, but there is an element of these guys thinking they have to do more than what they're being asked of, and that comes from the best of places.”

Hopefully the Falcons defense will catch a break and see the benefits of its strong-willed outlook as it faces New Orleans, which enters the week with the third-lowest graded offense in the NFL according to PFF.

However, the Saints offense hasn’t been as stagnant lately. During his first NFL start two weeks ago, rookie quarterback Tyler Shough completed 70.4% of his passes while throwing for 282 yards and two touchdowns during a win against Carolina.

Ulbrich seemed impressed with Shough, mentioning that the young quarterback is starting to settle in and boost the Saints’ offense.

“You've got this young quarterback that, I mean, everybody knew he was a fantastic athlete, he had the arm to throw every ball. He just had to give him some time and find himself. And unfortunately for us, he's finding himself. I feel like the offense is starting to click a little bit when you look at from the time that he's kind of taken over,” Ulbrich said. “I feel like statistically, they've just gotten better and better from week to week. There's a lot of weapons that we're going to have to account for, and they can beat you in a lot of different ways.”

The Falcons should see the return of linebacker Divine Deablo on Sunday. The five-game losing streak started when he went down in the first quarter against the San Francisco 49ers. However, they'll be missing defensive lineman Zach Harrison and cornerback Billy Bowman Jr., who went to injured reserve this week.

The Falcons will face the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, Nov.23 at 4:25 p.m. ET, broadcast on FOX.