ATLANTA — On Oct. 13, current Falcons player and Spalding High alumnus Dee Alford had one of the best games of his young NFL career as the Falcons defeated the Buffalo Bills with a score of 24-14.
Alford’s stat line included a sack, an interception and six tackles. Alford was ecstatic to earn the win. He had several goals on Monday night, one of which was to show the world what he can do to help the Falcons win.
After the win, Alford spoke with reporters to discuss some key moments in the game and the importance of the victory.
“My goal is just to show everyone this team, this organization, that I can do more than one thing and play more than one position,” Alford said. “I feel like I filled in and did my job; I caught an interception, as that was the goal to try and create takeaways. The goal also is to continue to be the number one defense as we are going to continue to grow and continue to get better, as that is the goal.”
The interception was Alford’s first of the season and the second one of his career. He attributed the interception to reviewing film and consulting with the coaching staff during the week of preparation.
“It was crazy, man, because last week they played the Patriots and I can’t think of his name, but the slot corner number 25 actually picked off that same route,” he said. “He gave me the same look with number 10 in the slot, and he ran a dig route, and I saw it coming.
“Just watching the film before the game and calling out your plays, having looks to own. We had a great week of preparation with these guys with the coaches, and shoutouts to Jerry Gray. He is a great nickel coach, he loves football, and he knows the game to put us in situations where we can make plays, and that’s what I did.”
It was a good team win for the Falcons, who are now 3-2 on the season. The Falcons have the highest-ranked defense in the NFL through Week 6. They did a good job slowing down last season’s MVP, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen.
“That was pretty much the game plan to try and slow down Josh Allen in many ways,” Alford said. “He is a great quarterback, and I feel like we did a great job of rushing and containing him. We were able to get the pass rush going and get some sacks. I think that overall, it was an excellent defensive performance from the defensive line, linebackers and secondary.”
The Falcons will be on prime-time television again with their Sunday Night Football game against the San Francisco 49ers. Alford understands that this is another crucial game for his team. However, they must physically prepare before they can be ready to face another strong opponent.
“First, we’ve got to get our bodies right, recover, and take tomorrow and do some extra work on your body,” he said. “Once we do that, we will lock in and focus on San Fran.”