NEW ORLEANS -- Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn said leading into Sunday's game against the New Orleans Saints his team couldn't afford to look ahead at the big picture in terms of the playoffs.
After Thursday's 31-17 loss, the Falcons need to start looking ahead toward 2019.
The sense of urgency was missing once again in a must-win scenario, kind of like the lackadaisical performance at Cleveland a few weeks back. The end result was a third-consecutive loss and a dip to 4-7 in the standings.
According to ESPN Stats & Information, only four teams in the Super Bowl Era have started the season 4-7 or worse and qualified for the playoffs.