Tyrann Mathieu discusses slow starts for the Saints defense and importance of the fanbase.
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00:00 >> And that's the same question you certainly asked Jason.
00:03 >> Is that about as much as a team can get tested with the losses piling up,
00:07 21-0, the crowd, the way it was in the dome?
00:10 I mean, is that a really tough atmosphere to stay competitive in and
00:14 to stay confident in?
00:16 >> Well, I thought we dug ourselves in the audience hole early on.
00:22 I thought we fought back, obviously, towards the end of the game.
00:28 We had two opportunities to get off the field on third and
00:33 eight plus, which shouldn't be Atlanta's defense.
00:37 So just left, obviously, started the game slow and
00:43 then towards the end, we just didn't come away with the play.
00:47 Which is, it's like, it's deflating, to say the least.
00:54 >> But I just mean when it was 21-0.
00:57 I mean, keeping spirits up, I mean,
01:00 is that in real jeopardy when a team's in a situation like that?
01:05 >> Man, no, I don't think so.
01:07 I think with the kind of guys we got on the sideline,
01:11 obviously coaches who have been in this league a long time.
01:17 I think a lot of us has kind of seen it all.
01:20 So I wouldn't say we were discouraged.
01:24 You just gotta find a way to band together and pull together,
01:28 which I thought we did for a good part of it.
01:33 And then, like I said, towards the end, just couldn't come away with the plays.
01:37 >> Hey, Tyron, having grown up in New Orleans and
01:39 understanding how passionate this fan base is,
01:41 what would be your message to them when you hear them booing you?
01:45 >> Man, obviously, it's disappointing, obviously.
01:53 I think we all need to play better.
01:54 And I think growing up in this city, it's no secret that we're all invested.
02:00 You know what I mean?
02:01 And so obviously, they have a right to apply pressure, so to speak.
02:09 But at the end of the day, man, we want family, we want community.
02:15 And it's gonna take all of us.
02:17 >> How big of a tough a matchup was LaPorter today, a tight end?
02:22 >> Well, he's gonna be a good player, I told him after the game.
02:24 Just crafty for a rookie, man.
02:27 The kind of routes he run, his frame, his length.
02:33 And then obviously, anytime you're in the quarterback on the same page,
02:38 they're gonna come away with some plays.
02:42 I thought he probably had two or more clutch plays in this game.
02:47 So it was a few third downs in there.
02:49 We had everybody covered.
02:50 And then he's put the ball on his body, now it's first down.
02:54 So we just gotta do a better job in the back end of this challenging guys,
03:00 understanding their route tree, what to expect.
03:02 But nevertheless, man, he's gonna be a good player for a long time.
03:08 >> To see the crowd jump on Derrick the way they did with the boos,
03:11 does it reach a point where you kind of have to ask them to stop,
03:13 even though it's their right?
03:14 Or how do you guys?
03:16 >> I mean, obviously, at a certain point in the game, right, we're rallying.
03:20 We're getting back in it.
03:22 We can hear our fans again.
03:23 And like I alluded to a couple minutes ago,
03:27 when I think of Saints football, obviously, you think of Blue Breeze, right?
03:34 All the great players that have all these colors.
03:36 But when I think of Saints, man, I always think of community.
03:40 It has very little to do with the football team, in my sense.
03:43 So obviously, we have to play better, right?
03:47 We gotta get up some to cheer for.
03:48 We gotta give them something to be proud of.
03:51 And so I think that responsibility falls on us as players.
03:56 >> Does that make it more emotional, you being from here,
03:59 you knowing how much it is community, and yet for one reason or
04:04 another, you can't kind of get over the hump in a lot of these games?
04:08 >> It's been tough, man.
04:09 This season hasn't gone nearly the way we wanted it to go.
04:14 Obviously, there's a sense of urgency, man.
04:18 After a while, you run out of opportunities, all right?
04:21 And so you just gotta find a way to stick together.
04:27 I think we got a lot of good players, we got a lot of good coaches.
04:30 I keep saying this, but we gotta find a way to always believe.
04:36 And I think today was probably a good example of that.
04:42 It is, we down early, 21-0.
04:46 Obviously, the crowd is not into it, and yet we still believe in each other and
04:51 put ourselves in a position to possibly win the game.
04:54 So I'm proud of that, I'm encouraged by that.
04:58 And then I'm proud of the way our fans came back towards the end of the game.
05:03 We needed that.
05:04 And so I think that had a good impact on us defensively,
05:08 because we were kind of able to put together three, four drives where we
05:13 were going off the field.
05:15 So we won team, we won family.
05:18 And like I said, we gotta give them something to be proud of.
05:23 >> When you're in the middle of all that, if you're tasting that,
05:26 he didn't hear the booze.
05:27 If you're the type of player that does hear it, did the booze bother you more,
05:31 or is it like hearing the Lions' chants in your own stadium?
05:36 >> I'd probably say the Lions' chants.
05:37 Like I said, man, we're all invested in this game,
05:43 from media to players, family, coaches, our associates, right?
05:48 Now, everybody got a hand in this.
05:51 And so obviously, like I said, I keep saying,
05:55 we just gotta find a way to kind of tune that out and stick together as much as we can.
06:02 I think being a teammate of someone that is getting booed,
06:05 you wanna be encouraging to that person, right?
06:08 You wanna continue to lift that person up.
06:10 And Derrick was able to make some plays for
06:13 us today in spite of all that was going on.
06:18 >> Tyron, what is the mental middle ground of, you still have five games left, but
06:22 we are running out of time, and the hurdles keep seeming to get larger and larger?
06:26 >> Yeah, I mean, I think really this next month, man,
06:30 is I think gonna be a big test for us.
06:34 It'll be a big challenge to see what kind of character that we have.
06:39 So obviously, it's not over by any sense.
06:44 But there is a sense of urgency to put together a big game,
06:50 especially in front of our own crowd.
06:51 So like I mentioned a couple minutes ago,
06:54 I think that falls on us as players to be absolutely ready.
07:00 And like I said, man, just get these people, get our coaches, our families,
07:07 get them ready for something to really be proud of.
07:11 Because I think a lot of people in New Orleans, they wanna celebrate you.
07:13 They wanna be happy for you.
07:14 And so, but you gotta give them something to look forward to.
07:17 >> Just real quick, since we didn't ask,
07:19 what did go wrong in the first quarter, you think, defensively?
07:23 What was hurting you?
07:24 >> Defense is easy.
07:26 It's always about tackling, obviously, leverage, fundamentals.
07:33 I thought early on, man, we were just, I don't know what it was,
07:37 I don't know what word to use, but we weren't ready.
07:41 And so, obviously, poor tackling, miscommunication,
07:47 all the things that haunt defenses, I think that kinda showed up
07:51 in the first couple drives.
07:52 And I think after that, we kinda settled down.
07:56 We realized that we could play with these dudes.
07:59 They're not doing anything that we haven't prepared for.
08:05 Yeah.
08:06 >> Why do you think that's been the case three or four times now,
08:09 that's so uncharacteristic of the defense to have that happen in the beginning?
08:13 >> I don't know, man, I can't necessarily put a finger on it.
08:16 The only thing I can say is, or what's the common denominators is,
08:23 anytime we start slow this year defensively,
08:27 it always kinda came down to tackling, miscommunication.
08:32 And it's given those guys opportunities to make it a two score game,
08:37 three score game.
08:38 And so, I mean, we've had opportunities to get off the field all season long,
08:44 especially early on in the game.
08:47 We just haven't been able to get it done.
08:49 Obviously, practice is important.
08:51 I think you continue to practice hard and
08:55 you continue to try to sharpen the things that you need to sharpen.
08:59 But I don't have an answer.
09:02 I just try to just say what it always is.
09:06 You play bad defenses, tackling and miscommunication.
09:09 >> Thank you.