His team is playing too many close games and still making too many mistakes for Smith to say that Atlanta is one of the NFL's few elite teams. He will only say that if the Falcons keep winning, they will put themselves in position to earn a top playoff seed.
Tight end Tony Gonzalez, the NFL's No. 2 career-leading receiver, agrees with his coach. Atlanta just escaped with a 24-23 victory at Tampa Bay, which had won four straight and five of six, but Gonzalez knows the Falcons still have plenty to prove.
"Everyone was saying they were the hottest team in the NFC South, and they probably were," Gonzalez said. "To be honest, we could have played a little better, but when you win close games like that, it's only a positive."
With just three days to prepare for Thursday night's home game against New Orleans, the Falcons want to clean up inconsistencies in the running game, red-zone offence and pass rush.
The Saints (5-6) are coming off a 10-point home loss to San Francisco, but Atlanta has lost 11 of its last 13 matchups against New Orleans.
Not only did the Falcons suffer their first loss of the season three weeks ago at the Superdome; they did so by turning the ball over on downs late in the game from inside the five-yard line. Atlanta also was forced to settle for two field goals in the red zone
Running back Michael Turner was held to 15 yards rushing on 13 carries, while New Orleans' Chris Ivory gained 10 more yards on his 56-yard touchdown than the Falcons managed all day.
Since that loss, Atlanta has managed to squeak past Arizona despite five interceptions by quarterback Matt Ryan. With two more Ryan turnovers at Tampa Bay, the Falcons are now minus-7 in turnover margin the last two games.
But they have two wins to show for it.
