He’s the talk of the NFL. Well, maybe he’s not quite the league’s hottest topic of discussion due to the issues with the Dallas Cowboys, but Matt Ryan certainly is the most talked-about rookie in the NFL. Why? Because, along with the running of Michael Turner and the coaching of Mike Smith, he has put the Falcons in the early playoff hunt.
Ryan is only going to start his seventh game of his career against Philadelphia on Sunday, but in his first six games he has accomplished more than Troy Aikman and Peyton Manning did in their first 16 games. Right now the Falcons stand at 4-2, which is good enough for second place in the NFC South. Aikman and Manning won four games combined in their respective rookie seasons (Aikman won one game and Manning won three).
I was at STATS in downtown Atlanta for the Falcons Draft Party in April. When word got out that the Falcons were going to draft Ryan with the third overall pick, the reception was lukewarm. NFL fans know that when you take a quarterback that high in the draft, they frequently don’t pan out. Guys like Joey Harrington, David Carr, Akili Smith and Ryan Leaf come to mind, and they are either out of the NFL or riding the bench. But the problem for them was that when they came into the NFL, they had to learn an entirely new system and had a tough time absorbing what was thrown at them. Ryan played his college ball at Boston College, which runs a pro-style offense, and his head coach his senior year was former NFL coach Jeff Jagodzinski. Due to his familiarity with a pro-style offense and his intelligence, Ryan was able to move up the depth chart and eventually be named the starter on opening day. He did not disappoint when he threw his first pass to Michael Jenkins for a touchdown against the Detroit Lions, and he hasn’t looked back since.
Due to his solid play early on, many experts have compared him to the likes of Manning and Tom Brady due to his composure and his command of the huddle. The only glaring concern is red-zone efficiency. Out of the 20 times that the Falcons have reached the red zone, they have only scored two touchdowns. That should be something that this team, as young as it is, will improve on as the season progresses. But other than that, his numbers have been solid. His completion percentage is 57.8 with five touchdowns and three interceptions.
There is no question that he is an early candidate for Offensive Rookie of the Year. But if he is able to lead this team to enough wins to make the playoffs, then he could end up having one of the greatest rookie seasons for a quarterback in NFL history.
Jones can be reached at bjones@scoreatl.com.