 It's Friday night in the A and you know what that means. Kelly Price and Tori McElhady coming at you on Rise Up Tonight, presented by AT&T. Woo, you guys, it has been a roller coaster of emotions this week. I know you feel that one, Tori. You know, for better or for worse, we're feeling all the feels. So, feeling all of it. All of the things. All of the things. Well, this is the NFL. There are no moral victories. Nobody in the Falcons locker room or in their fan base wants to hear about how three quarters of football last Sunday were great because now you have to turn the page to the defending Super Bowl champions in LA who are mad after also getting embarrassed on national TV their last time out. And don't forget, they've had extra time to prepare for this one. Time now to huddle up. We start with the Red Zone, a place the Falcons offense found four times but only found success in twice. I asked Arthur Smith the other day straight up, now that you can roll back the film, what do you feel like you guys could do better than you did on Sunday in that area? He pointed right to the Red Zone execution. And I remember even tweeting that 50% efficiency there seemed pretty ominous as the Saints were mounting their comeback. How can they be better this week there, Tori? Well, first off, I'm going to say it's not going to be easy. Marcus Mariota said it best when we were talking to him on Wednesday that this Rams defense is one that has three levels of all pro players. So when you shrink the field down inside the 20, their presence will be felt. But for the Falcons, they can't settle for field goals, which is something that happened too often last Sunday. As much as everyone loves Young Waikui, field goals aren't going to cut it against the Rams. Arthur Smith said it and I agree. If you go 50% in the Red Zone, that's not going to win games. Great point there from Marcus Mariota. Of course, a big part of the Saints comeback was increasing their tempo, finding a rhythm for James Winston and making adjustments on offense. In response, the defense went into kind of their own version of tempo, which changed the play calling, at least from an outsider's perspective. I think a lot of Falcons fans out there were wondering, why didn't the Falcons counter-adjust successfully? I think you have some insight from Dean Pease himself on that one. Yeah, so if you actually go back and watch that game, you'll notice the Saints added more protection for James Winston in the fourth quarter, adding a tie-in and running back into the protection to keep James Winston clean. So it was harder for the Falcons front to get to him. That, and I will say, the Saints receivers were just honestly getting in and out of their breaks faster. All of that resulted in the comeback that we saw, but Dean Pease spoke to the media on Thursday for the first time since that game, and he said it really wasn't that they dialed back pressure. The Saints were just picking up on it, and the Falcons weren't executing in the fourth quarter the way that we needed to see them do. While the ending was something Falcons fans may be too familiar with, the response we heard from the Falcons themselves was a little different. The team's leader said, yeah, that wasn't great, obviously. But we don't need to change anything. Nobody needs to make some crazy locker room speech to rally the troops here. Do you think that's maybe a sign that the culture shift in this franchise in this locker room is in fact working? So I'll say this, perhaps. I think it has the opportunity to, but I think we'll be able to answer that question as the weeks of the season go on. Obviously you don't want to see the Saints loss carry over. So can this Falcons team respond and play four quarters of complete football in LA and then again in a week later in Seattle? That to me would be a marker of a culture shift because that is actually putting action behind words. Absolutely. Big stretch here for the Falcons. We didn't talk much about the offensive line, but that unit looked completely different this Sunday than what we saw all of last season. A career game for Cordero Patterson. No sacks allowed on Marcus Mariota. All good things, all good things. So we're going to start with a big guy shout out in this week's edition of Falcons Fifth. Caleb McGarry, new boot. I'm not sure if these are genuine ostrich that he has on his feet there or if he had to split it up into three payments. But either way, they are completely fire. Also, we talked about Marcus Mariota and Matt Ryan repeating their outfits. Right. McGarry has worn this exact plaid shirt every single week. I am not exaggerating. I've been saying we're going to do a mashup of it one day, but gotta have a little commotion for the boots here. I mean, okay, first off, I would like to incorporate these boots into my personal game day wardrobe. Second off, I think Caleb McGarry actually has the right idea about wearing the same thing. Every single week, he doesn't have to spend that extra 30 minutes deciding what he wants to wear. The guy already knows. Yeah, he's a simple man. He knows what he wants. Next up, Kaderrill Hodge and the amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. There is so much going on here. I actually don't hate it though. Okay, so for me, it's giving like grandma's quilt energy, but I'm kind of on the same page as you. I surprisingly don't hate this look either. To me, it looks like it's peak comfort, you know? Anyone who watches this show knows we are big pullover fans. We sure are. The jeans also here giving grandma sewed these patches on my pulls in my jeans vibes. Next up, a really nice nod from Lorenzo Carter who played in New York before this to First Responders. He had on a New York City fire department jacket up there and he keeps the rest of the fit clean too, so we like to see it. So as you all know, Kelly and I love a pop of color and I think Lorenzo does a really good job with this. I think he's pulling it off. As for the nod to First Responders, I think that's awesome. I love when we can add a little meaning behind something like clothes and fashion. It just adds another layer. No pun intended, of course. Finally, to Kwan Graham, a little cheetah moment, and I hope I don't lose our audience with this reference, as the cheetah girls once inspirationally said, our spots are different colors. We just make each other stronger just like the Falcons D-Line on Sunday. You know it's true when you think about it. I did not think that we were going to get a cheetah girls reference on the show this week, but here we are. And you know what? Here's another one. You got to strut like you mean it. And so far, I'm really liking what I'm seeing from this group of guys this year when it comes to the Falcons. I'm liking the amount of cheetah girls references that we're fitting in here to bring Falcons fits as well. Well, the Los Angeles trip marks the beginning of a long West Coast trip for the Falcons. While they're gone, they're going to need some friendly reminders of home. So we asked what is on their devices lock screen in our question of the week. It is a picture of me and my wife on a lake linear. So something good to see. My lock screen photo is a picture of, it's an overhead picture of the end zone, the throwback end zone in Mercedes Benz. Just that says has the little throwback falcon on it. And that's all it is. And I just think it's cool. My dog, Luca. Yeah. Yeah, it's my boy. He's a mini golden doodle, all black. My favorite dog ever. Yeah, he's the best. Full lock screen. That would be my dog. Black lab, black English lab. A lion. I don't know. I like lions. I love the shout out for the doggies. And I love that OZ is a picture of the stadium. I'm talking about motivation, but I think my favorite sponsor is the last one with who I like lions is giving I love lamp. I love it so much. What's your lock screen? Mine is so speaking of West Coast. We're going out to the West Coast here in the next week. And when we went to San Francisco last year, I have a picture of the Golden Gate Bridge. Nice. Nice. Mine is a wedding picture because I'm basic, I guess, like that. So while y'all won't want to miss this one, we go in the nest with the NFL's all-time leader in receiving yards and receptions as a tight end. Yep. Tony Gonzalez joins us later in the show. Plus Chris Lindstrom was doing much more than watching film and practicing in Flyer Branch on Monday. More on how he's getting back in this week. Rise up tonight in the nest. Rise up tonight is presented by AT&T and brought to you by Georgia Lottery. Today could be the day. By Home Depot, how doers get more done? By Mercedes Benz, the best of nothing. And by Truits, committed to a better future. Chris Lindstrom has really come into his own as this team's right guard, but he hasn't forgotten where he's come from either, continuing to give back more and more each year. This week he surprised five local teachers with a back to school shopping spree as we rise up for Atlanta, brought to you by Truist. Lindstrom says he knows the struggle is real this time of year for educators who often spend their own hard-earned money on classroom supplies. He's seen his own family members who are teachers go through the same thing. The five lucky teachers this week told Lindstrom that his donations were quite literally making dreams come true, helping them buy resources they only dreamed of having before, but just couldn't afford. The fourth year player out of Boston College says it's important for him to keep giving back to pay homage to everyone who's helped him along the way. Back to school is a huge time of year and I have many family members. My dad, my brother, my aunt were all teachers and teachers go above and beyond what they're asked or required to do. Part of that is back to school shopping. If they don't have supplies, either the school can't provide it or the students need something that's missing, just trying to be able to fill that hole for them and that the teachers don't have to have the burden of that on them. Good on him. As we roll ahead here on Rise Up Tonight, we went one of two unless we thought it takes all on the L, it's fine, but we've got more where that came from just ahead. And Tony Gonzalez gets real with us about the Falcons team after week one. That's next on Rise Up Tonight. Rise Up Tonight is presented by AT&T and brought to you by Georgia Lottery. Today could be the day. By Home Depot, how doers get more done? By Mercedes Benz, the best of nothing and by Truits committed to a better future. And that's with Kelly Tory and this week's special guest brought to you by Mercedes Benz. Our next guest needs no introduction. The Hall of Famer, one of the greatest tight ends of all time, obviously a former Falcon. Lots of week one madness going on around the NFL Tony, especially here in Atlanta. The Falcons giving up that late lead. How much did you think that that loss is going to have an effect on this team, maybe moving forward and kind of the culture they're trying to build here? You know, it's the first game of the year, so you can't put too much on it as far as the rest of the season goes because I thought they looked okay. I mean, they had it. Let's put it that way. And you jump out to that big old lead. It's just unfortunate that this is what's playing the Falcons. Shoot, since I was there, they blow these big old leads and obviously it's not a coaching because it happens to different coaches. I don't know what it is, but whatever it is, I guess if you're looking at the silver line, it's that they did get out to that big lead and if they can just go ahead and make some tweaks, they got themselves a really good football team and I think a better football team than what a lot of people anticipated going into the season. Tony, to that end, I mean, what did you think of this offense? To me, looking at it, it looked very different than offenses we've seen the Falcons have over the course of the last few years. I mean, when you looked at this offense, how did you make up what you saw from them in week one? Well, obviously, you got the, you know, Maddie Ice is gone over there to Indy. So that's the face of the franchise over the last decade and a half. But I like Marcus Marriott as a good quarterback. He's been around this league for a long time. Arthur Smith, to me, is an offensive guru. He knows how to move the ball up and down the field. And they got players. I think Kyle Pitts, the tight end, he is, he's on his way. He could be the best tight end in the NFL within the next couple of years. What I'd like to see from him is those young receivers around him develop and maybe get that, that stud guy. I know when I came there, I had some of my best seasons consistently because I had Julio Jones with me because I had Roddy White with me. And then we'll see as the quarterback develops, whether it's Marcus for the next foreseeable future. I think Kyle Pitts is going to be a big time stud. You mentioned Kyle Pitts. I think a lot of use yesterday, I think a couple of fans were a little surprised with maybe how he wasn't using the red zone and stuff like that. What do you like about his game and how do you see them maybe using him more in those situations in the future? Well, the thing that I have, I feel sorry for Kyle right now because I can relate. I've been that guy when I was out in Kansas City where you're the number one option. You're the guy from the receiving standpoint. So the defenses know that and they're going to double team you. And so, and they're going to have a plan for you. The best thing for that offense to do is you got to get Kyle the ball on first down or second down because come third down, he's going to get double team. And when you get to the red zone, you got to split him out. You got to use him out of the backfield. You got to, and obviously you got to give him the ball again on first and second down because as soon as the passing situation goes up, they're going to be like, hey, we're going to cover Kyle. And so that's, and then until then, until you can get that big time receiver, like I said before, when I got Julio Jones and Roddy White, okay, I'm going to get that one-on-one matchup because you can't double team me anymore. Until he gets that, they're going to have to be very, very creative how they get the ball. Allah Travis Kelsey, Kansas City Chiefs. He's the number one guy. Now that Tyree Kil is gone out to Miami and he had 121 yards yesterday and eight catches and a touchdown. And it's because Andy Reed was really getting him the ball on that first and second down and then using him throughout the game from different places. So the defense couldn't get a key on him. But like I said, Kyle Pitts is, I don't know, I mean, there's been some athletic guys that I could think of throughout history, but I'm really, really excited about what he can do throughout his career. If he stays healthy and he can get his head right, which I think he can after that rookie year having over a thousand yards, the sky's the limit with him. I'm talking like one of those tight ends that has hall of fame potential to really set some eye-popping numbers at the position with his ability. I think you and Falcons fans both are hoping all of that, all of those things come true. But something that we love to ask some former players who come on our show is what was your favorite memory in a Falcons uniform? And so I'll pose that question to you. What was your favorite memory? Favorite memory. I mean, it's winning a playoff game, which I had never won in my career. You know, in year 16, I finally won my first playoff game we played against the Seattle Seahawks and had a nail-biting win. And then we went to the NFC Championship game. That was the most exciting game I've ever been a part of, obviously, with the chance to go to the Super Bowl. We didn't win that game, of course. But nevertheless, it's one of those things that I look back and say, wow, what a cool thing to know that we made it to the final game to get to the Super Bowl. So I loved my time out in Atlanta, filled with some great memories. I could go on and on. And then playing with some great players too. Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, Roddy White, John Abraham on defense. Mike Smith, the head coach. It was a really good time that I had out there. When you have the loss that they just suffered, people in Atlanta are very focused on that narrative that you kind of even mentioned. Those fourth quarters, very hard for the Falcons kind of to finish games. How do you, as a locker room and guys in that locker room, what do you think they're kind of thinking to get past that right now? Shoot, you know what? That's such a great question. I've never been a part of anything like that. I don't know if I've ever had those types of collapses that they've had legendary over the last five, six years. Going back to the Super Bowl, 28-3. Even when I was there, the game, we didn't make it to the Super Bowl against the 49ers. We were up 24-10 or 24-14 at halftime. And I'm like, we're going to the Super Bowl. Slip, it seems like it's a little mental at this point. Or it's just incredible bad luck. But as a player in the locker room, I'm just telling everybody as a leader in that locker room, look, let's flush down the toilet, go out there and let's just keep, do we know that we have the talent? We know what we can do. We built these incredible leads. That's not easy to do in the NFL. We just got to find a way to finish, especially come that fourth quarter and get the job done. But the silver lining in that is, is that we're a good football team. I mean, we're blowing teams out. We just need to hold on to these leads and good things are going to happen to us. Very good point. Well, thank you so much for the time, Tony. We really appreciate it for all you Falcons fans who want to see the full thing. Head to Fox5Atlanta.com. It will be posted on there and we'll be right back on Rise Up Tonight. Right whatever you all want. The same guys that you guys ranked as 45th. You buried us in May. Barriers again. We don't care. We'll get back to work. Thank you. Well, that was how Arthur Smith walked off after Sunday's brutal loss at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It was a heat of the moment, emotional response. And coach did say he let his emotions get the best of him in that moment. But I must say, for a guy who rails against narratives on Sunday, fair or not, his team played into the biggest existing narrative that weighs on this franchise. There needs to be accountability, accountability and accountability rather than deflection of blame. Sure, there may be 16 games left, but isn't the most important one this one? Before kickoff, the media had nothing to point to in the loss column. Now they do. There's a fine line between shutting out the outside noise and not being accountable to the fans and the media and even your own team when you downplay a loss. We love Arthur Smith's passion, his sense of humor and how much he does decry hot takes and narratives. But a good way to kill the narrative that hangs over the Atlanta Falcons is to hide in games, silence it with wins. And that's my hot take for the week, Tori. I actually kind of want to add something to your hot take if I can. I thought the way that Grady Jarrett handled his post game press conference after the loss was the mark of a true professional. He talked about the energy he felt in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. And yeah, I was there. And that place was rocking in a way I don't think I've seen it rock since I've been covering this team. Afterwards, Grady said it was the most excited he felt this team getting a very long time within the fourth quarter happened and they lost. And Grady said this team can't let that energy from the fan base, that home environment, that loud atmosphere go to waste. So my hot take, be more like Grady Jarrett in these moments. Very good take there. One more point that we'll hit here. Tyler Algierre, one of the more shocking names on that inactive list on Sunday. Of course, losing Damien Williams early is unfortunate. Cordell Patterson steps up. He has a career day. But if I had a mild take, not a hot take per se, it would be that we see the BYU product on Sunday, even if it's in a small dose. What do you think, Tori? I'm not going to lie. Seeing Tyler Algierre's name on an active list on Sunday definitely made my eyes bug out a little bit because we saw very early on why it's so important that he is active. If anything for depth, Arthur Smith was asked about this earlier in the week and he said it had to do with special teams numbers and wanting to go heavier at tight end. But I'd argue the Falcons need Algierre more than they need Felipe Franks, Jared Bernhardt, who both were active on Sunday. And honestly, that's nothing against them. I just feel safe for having running back depth. Absolutely agree with that. Well, hopefully, as Cordero Patterson said, they want to get the fans on their side this week. We'll see what happens in LA. That'll do it for us. Thanks for staying up late with us here on Rise Up Tonight. For Tori McElhaney, I'm Kelly Price. We'll see you back here next Friday night. Good night.