"Falcons wide receiver Roddy White doesn't believe anybody can defend him.

Falcons offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey doesn't think anybody can stop his star pupil, either.

Both might be right because White leads the league in catches with 91 and yards with 1,291.

However, no one is unstoppable and, in two of the past four games, White got ticked off when two defensive backs got in his face, barking a little too much for his taste after rare stops.

St. Louis Rams cornerback Ron Bartell was one culprit, and White was called for a penalty after shooting him an elbow.

Two games later, White got another penalty against Tampa Bay after backup cornerback E.J. Biggers jumped in his face after making a good play.

"He just has his way about expressing his feelings and sometimes he gets us in trouble," Falcons offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey said. "I know that he's trying to address that."

The fearless mentality is what has helped White march to the top of the league's wide-receiver class after a slow start in his career.

"He's just a very competitive guy," Mularkey said. "He just hates to lose a play. He hates to lose on one play. That's a good thing for us."

That nature of the one-on-one existence of wide receivers and defensive backs leads to many similar "discussions" during games.

"Everybody wants to do well and win on each down," safety Thomas DeCoud said. "Sometimes heads bump and guys have shorter tempers than others. It can get that way sometimes."

DeCoud tries to take a more gentlemanly approach after he lays out a receiver with a crushing hit or breaks up a pass."