Flowery Branch, Ga. – The Atlanta Falcons staple has officially hung up his cleats.
Quarterback Matt Ryan announced his formal retirement from the NFL on Monday, signing a one-day contract in Atlanta to retire as a Falcon. His professional career spanned 2008-22, and all but one season was spent with the organization that first gave him a shot at age 22. He is now 38 years old.
“It's been a hell of a ride,” Ryan said. “I'm excited to see the next chapter of life and see where it takes us. But today, it's exciting for me because you never have control in this business of where you're going to start, and I don't. It was a startup in Atlanta, and it was 14 years. Lasted, now I can reserve it and retire as a Falcon today.”
Ryan was brought to Atlanta from Boston College in 2008. He was picked 3rd overall in the draft. His run as QB1 began immediately. In his freshman season, Ryan started all 16 games, went 11-5 and completed 61.1% of his passes for 3,440 yards, 16 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Ryan helped the Falcons win a playoff bid that year, losing to the Arizona Cardinals in the wild-card round.
Fast forward to 2021 and Ryan started all 17 games in what would ultimately be his last season in a Falcons jersey. He completed 67% of his passes for 3,968 yards, 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. The Falcons finished with a 7-10 record, putting them just out of reach.
In all, Ryan started 222 of 225 regular season games for the Falcons. He compiled a successful 120-102 record and made six playoff appearances in his 14 years with Atlanta. The 2016 season included a Super Bowl run, but the Falcons lost to the New England Patriots.
“It hurts,” Ryan said. “I think it's one of those things that's always a part of you, right? It's hard to miss out on what you're ultimately meant to do, but that's life. A lot of things in your life are going to go that way. You remember seeing Winston Churchill's quote: 'Success is not final, and The key is the courage to continue.
Instead he did it by outpacing every major franchise.
It's Ryan The Falcons' all-time passing leader With a stat line of 5,242 completions on 8,003 attempts for 59,735 yards, 367 touchdowns and 170 interceptions. He is averaging a career-best 269.1 passing yards per game. He completed the most passes (65.5%) among players who played in at least 10 games. He threw the longest pass of 2019 — 93 yards, which doubled the league-high mark that year.
Because of his success, Ryan received several national awards. He was named the Associated Press' Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2008. He later earned first-team All-Pro recognition, Player of the Year honors and MVP honors from the AP in 2016. He was also elected. Pro Bowl four times (2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016).
“As I went back and read these notes and got ready for today,” Falcons owner Arthur Blank said, “it struck me in 14 years that we had Matt as the quarterback and leader of our franchise, and what he really accomplished. .
“… This was an exceptional football player but probably more exceptional as a man, a husband, a father and a great friend. He was a dear friend to me, to my whole family during that period. They see. Matt is one of ours, he's definitely one of Atlanta's own.
Ryan served under three full-time head coaches while with the Falcons: Mike Smith (2008-14), Dan Quinn (2015-20) and Arthur Smith (2021). Current head coach Raheem Morris served as Ryan's interim head coach for 11 games in 2020, and Quinn was let go after the first five games.
The Falcons traded Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts on March 21, 2022, in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
That year saw Ryan's final season. In 12 starts with the Colts, Ryan went 4-7-1, completing 67% of his passes for 461 yards, 14 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He missed two games – 8 and 9 weeks – Sam Ehlinger entered due to a shoulder injury. Ryan was replaced by Nick Foles in Week 16. The Colts finished 4-12-1.
“I think we expected a different result, but I'm grateful for the opportunity,” Ryan said. “You don't take the opportunity to go out and play in this league lightly. So, thank you to everyone in Indianapolis.”
On May 15, 2023, CBS Sports announced that Ryan would join the network as an NFL analyst for select games and programs for the upcoming season. When Ryan shared the news on Instagram, he made sure to add, “PS – This is not a retirement post.”
“I wanted nothing more as a kid than to play professional sports,” Ryan said. “In April of 2008, (the Falcons) gave me that opportunity. I know draft picks are never an easy decision. There's a lot of options, there's a lot of ways you can go. So, for me, it's been a responsibility every day. Make sure you're right, I tried to do my best for 14 seasons here.
“Thank you for the trust then, thank you for the trust over those 14 years, and thank you for the friendships that have continued. I will definitely always be pulling for Atlanta and the Falcons.”
