With the No. 3 overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, the Atlanta Falcons selected quarterback Matt Ryan out of Boston College. 16 years later, just days before the 2024 NFL Draft, Ryan has officially announced his retirement from the NFL.
Looking for some stability after the Michael Vick situation and the Bobby Petrino debacle, the Falcons found some in Ryan. He started all 16 games as a rookie, taking home the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year award for that season.
Ryan completed 61.1 percent of his passes in 2008, throwing for 3,440 yards and 16 touchdowns with 11 interceptions. Most importantly, he led the Falcons to 11 wins and a spot in the postseason. While Atlanta lost in the Wild Card round to the Arizona Cardinals, it was just the start of what would be an illustrious career.
Ryan would be the starting quarterback for the Falcons for 14 seasons. He led them to the postseason six times, advancing to the Super Bowl once. Ryan and the Falcons were so close to defeating Tom Brady and the New England Patriots before their infamous meltdown after being ahead 28-3.
That Super Bowl run came during the 2016 season, which is when Ryan also took home the MVP award. He completed 69.9 percent of his passes that season for 4,944 yards and 38 touchdowns with only seven interceptions. All of those statistics were single-season career-best numbers for Ryan.
Right down to the end of his career in Atlanta, Ryan was slinging the ball. In 2019 and 2020, his age 34 and 35 seasons, he led the NFL in completions both years. In 2020, he also led the league in passing attempts, trying to keep an overmatched Falcons team as competitive as he could.
His playing days would come to an end in the 2022 season, as Ryan played with the Indianapolis Colts for one season. Unable to stay healthy and not overly productive when on the field, as the Cotls went 4-7-1 in his 12 starts, Ryan was released during the 2023 offseason.
There was chatter that he could join a team at some point, but nothing came to fruition. He has since been doing some work in the studio and analyst, as he quickly transitioned into his post-playing days career.
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