SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Bijan Robinson shook his head while talking to reporters inside the Atlanta Falcons locker room on Sunday night.
The Falcons had just dropped a prime time game at the San Francisco 49ers, 20-10, and Robinson was clear he wanted the conversation around one particular topic to come to an end: him being the best player in football.
"All that best player in the NFL, that stuff is dead," the running back said.
Robinson was frustrated by the team's loss, particularly how the Falcons' offense played in scoring just 10 points. But he was also noting that he got outplayed by his friend and 49ers superstar running back Christian McCaffrey.
Robinson had 92 yards from scrimmage with a receiving touchdown, while McCaffrey had 201, including 129 yards on the ground with a pair of touchdowns.
"I mean, for him, that's what he does," Robinson said. "He's been doing it for a long time, and for me, I got a lot of work to do."
Robinson, in his third year in the league, was coming off the best performance of his career in the Falcons' win last week on "Monday Night Football" against the Buffalo Bills. Robinson had 238 yards from scrimmage, including 170 rushing with an 81-yard touchdown.
Given whom the Falcons beat and the stage, Robinson received a ton of hype last week -- and rightfully so. Falcons coach Raheem Morris has been touting Robinson as the best in the NFL all season. And surely, there is an argument to be made. Robinson still leads the league in yards from scrimmage per game (152.3). But Robinson didn't really want to hear those words then and definitely doesn't want to now.
"I don't listen to stuff like that," he said. "I've got to be the best player for this team, and I've got to take it one day at a time and just trusting God and what he has for the guys and myself and that's how we're going to be the best team that we can be."
Robinson played well enough Sunday night and the defense got stops when needed. The Falcons just needed more from everyone else on offense.
Second-year quarterback Michael Penix Jr. hasn't quite found his groove this season. He was 21-of-38 for 241 yards and a touchdown against the 49ers. San Francisco pressured Penix on a season-high 34% of his dropbacks. While under duress, Penix was just 1-of-10 for 9 yards with two sacks.
The offensive line deserves some blame, as well. Left tackle Jake Matthews is dealing with a banged-up ankle, but still started, preserving his league-leading 184-game starts streak. Right tackle Elijah Wilkinson, who has been a pleasant surprise in filling in for the injured Kaleb McGary, had probably his toughest game of the season.
"We've got to find a way to win," Penix said. "If it's on the ground, if it's in the air, whatever it takes. That's what we got to do here."
The Falcons, like last year, can move the football. They are seventh in the NFL in yards per game (364.3). But they have a hard time getting the ball in the end zone despite all that yardage. That's an enigma that Atlanta must solve if it wants to be the kind of offense it believes it can be.
"Got to figure it out," wide receiver Darnell Mooney said. "We've got to get some points on the board. That's the main goal to win a game is getting points and three points is cool, but we really need to get some touchdowns."