At one point during the NFC Championship game Sunday in Atlanta, Matt Ryan seemed to be on top of the world. After shaking the demons and securing his first career playoff win in typical “Matty Ice” fashion last week, Ryan started Sunday with another bang. He connected on a long touchdown bomb to Julio Jones early in the first quarter, and followed it up with two more first half passing scores, on route to throwing for 271 yards in the first half, which already was more than he’d thrown in any playoff game up to this point.
The Falcons were up 17-0 in the second, and led 24-14 at the half, and most thought Ryan was inching towards that “elite” tier of quarterbacks that is so often talked about this time of the year. In fact, don’t take my word for it, just check out notable and well respected ESPN and Grantland journalist Bill Simmons’ Twitter feed. That is not a shot at Simmons however, as at that moment everyone, including me, thought Ryan was “the man.” This was the Falcons year, and Ryan was going to be in line for a huge, possible nine figure contract extension, as the Falcons looked primed for the Super Bowl.
But then the second half started, and instead of us talking about Ryan’s record 396 passing yards, and the Falcons chances to beat Baltimore in New Orleans, two Ryan mistakes turned out to be the story, and just like that, the “elite” tag was gone. “Matty Ice” failed to live up to the name on this day, as he threw a costly third quarter interception, along with fumbling a snap out of the shotgun that turned the ball over to the Niners.
Despite both those mistakes however, Ryan had one last chance to win it in the fourth quarter, as he led the Falcons down the field and into the redzone, as the Niners led 28-24 inside of two minutes. With just 10 yards to go before a go ahead score, Ryan missed Roddy White over the middle on fourth down, and that sealed the Falcons fate, while leaving Ryan’s legacy unwritten.
Life will go on for Ryan however, as he is sure to still sign a mega deal with the Falcons this offseason, but one can’t help but wonder where the Falcons go from here. Despite the expected retirement from HOF lock Tony Gonzalez, talent is not the issue, especially offensively. The real question around the dirty birds will be the same one it has been for years now, and that is their winning mentality, or possible lack there of.
Ryan will only be 28 next season, and will be entering his sixth NFL season, so there is still plenty of time for him to rewrite this all too familiar script, but the NFL is a “win now,” and “what have you done for me lately” league. Unfortunately for Ryan, that means all people will talk about for the next eight months is the fact that the Falcons were shut out in the second half of Sunday’s game, which ultimately led to their elimination from the playoffs. To go along with that, questions will also arise about the Falcons blowing huge leads at home two weeks in a row, as well as Ryan’s 1-4 career playoff record. Is that fair? No, but it’s the truth, and even though about 20-25 other teams in the NFL would take Ryan over their current QB, to this point he has as many rings as the college kid writing this article.
