Week 21 QB projections   •  ATL Stats

QB Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons

HT: 6-4, WT: 228, Born: 5-17-1985, College: Boston College, Drafted: Round 1, Pick 3

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Stats and Week 21 Projection

WK	OPP	RES	CMP	ATT	PYD	Y/A	PTD	INT	RSH	YD	Y/R	TD	FPT
18	at NYG	L, 2-24	24	41	199	4.9	0	0	3	3	1.0	0	10
SEASON TOTAL			347	566	4177	7.4	29	12	37	84	2.3	2	350

Week 21 Injury Status and Other News

No official injury reports have been released yet

Week 21 Matchup Info

The Atlanta Falcons have a bye this week.

Game Summaries

Week 1 at CHI - Matt Ryan started off very efficiently with the ball but ultimately a huge weakness in his philosophy was uncovered. Ryan spread the ball well and hit his recievers in stride early on with short routes. However, this kind of dinking and dunking passing game requires a high level of execution and leaves almost no room for mistakes. Ryan started to miss some throws and the whole offense became very stagnant as they could not remain on the field. Ryan threw a poor interception to LB Urlacher as he was trying to fit the ball over his head to his TE but simply under estimated Urlachers athletic ability. Later in the game, Ryan lost the ball in his own half with turned into a scoop and score as he hung in the pocket for too long. The Bears defense must be given credit as they stifled the Falcons and did not give up any big plays down the field. The Bears allowed Ryan to play his short game of passing and eventually mistakes started and Ryans game unravelled. Ryan's offensive line did not give him sufficient time in the pocket at times as he took a lot of big hits. He finished the game with some garbage numbers and completions but really this game was never close.

Week 2 vs PHI - Matt Ryan had a rocky game on the national stage on Sunday night, but he kept his composure just enough to pull out a thrilling come from behind victory versus a game Eagles team. Ryan was under pressure from the start of the game and by mid-way through the contact he was reacting to it when it wasn't even there. The lack of time to go through his progressions made it difficult for him to look downfield much so he relied heavily on Tony Gonzalez time after time. He was really having a subpar game (he had thrown 2 INT's heading into the 4th quarter) before engineering two long TD drives late to carry the Falcons to victory. When the dust cleared Ryan had tossed a career high 4 TD's in the face of a tough game from one of the league's best teams and rose to the occasion when the Falcons needed it most.

Week 3 at TB - Pressure Pressure Pressure!!! Matt Ryan was under pressure the entire day and his Tackles did a horrific job of slowing the down the Bucs Defensive Linemen coming off the ends as well as LBs on the blitz although the Bucs were getting solid pressure all day from their front 4 alone. If the Falcons cannot get Matt Ryan better pass protection it's going to be a long year. Atlanta should probably be 0-3 right now. Give Ryan a lot of credit for hanging in the pocket as much as he did but all day he had to keep throwing the ball to short hot routes and only a handful of times was he able to really challenge the Bucs down field. Even when he could get some time in the pocket he did not cash in. Case in point he had Julio Jones with a few steps on the defense but he under threw the ball and Jones had to peel back and wait for the ball to get to him where is he had caught it in stride he would have waltzed into the end zone. The Falcons did try to go no huddle and that worked for a while as Ryan found Roddy White on a give and go route where White was able to shake off the Bucs defender and turn a 15 yard play into 30 yards which resulted in the Falcons first score of the game. Owners should be concerned about Matt Ryan because if his pass protection remains poor then his health over the season is going to be in jeopardy. He was hit early and often throughout the game and eventually that leads to turnovers which he accounted for three of them on the day. The plus though is he still managed to throw for over 300 yds and he still has a dynamite trio to throw the ball to in White, Jones, and Gonzalez. The Falcons simply need to pass protect for him better or get some additional blockers to stay in and help out.

Week 4 at SEA - Ryan had a stellar first half. He began the day 4-for-4 on his opening drive, which was capped with a short TD to Tony Gonzalez. Ryan showed great composure and kept the Seahawks off balance throughout. In part, it was because he has such a dangerous trio to throw to: White and Jones each can be unstoppable at times, and when they were covered, Gonzalez always seemed to be there underneath. Ryan also mixed things up a little, getting a first down on what looked like a planned bootleg but was more likely quick decision making upon seeing plenty of room ahead of him. The timing of Ryan's throws was generally impeccable, and gave his receiving corps the best chance at gaining more yards. In a smart adjustment by the defence, the Seahawks forced Ryan to throw to his RB's and TE's more in the second half. Ryan was still able to move the ball through the air, but was clearly struggling; he did try to go deep to Jones again but his rhythm was off and he overthrew. Late in the game, the Falcons used the no huddle offense, and had a lot of trouble trying to audible against Seattle's "12th man" (the fans). Even though at this point in the game, the Seahawks had all the momentum, Ryan kept his cool and did everything he could to keep moving the chains, putting the ball into Gonzalez's hand often, and even scrambling for a 7 yard 3rd-down conversion.

Week 5 vs GB - The Falcons took a page out of the old "Jeff Fisher against Peyton Manning" playbook. They came into the game, pounded the ball, worked the play-action game and kept Rodgers off the field. However, once the Packers took away the running game, Ryan had a tough time. Ryan was able to lead the Falcons down the field for two early scores, but then was unable to do anything else the rest of the game. The Packers clamped down on the running game, and without the playaction threat, Ryan was erratic. He did have a few penalties that hurt him, one on a 47 yard strike to Harry Douglas that was wiped out on a holding penalty. But Ryan was not the victim of heavy pressure. He had time in this one, but was just unable to get anything going. He threw two deep balls to Julio Jones, and both throws weren't thrown particularly well. Ryan had two interceptions towards the end of the game that could have been caught. On one pass to Gonzalez, Gonzalez got his hands on the deep ball, but tipped it and Peprah intercepted it. Then towards the end of the game, Roddy White let one go through his hands, and Bush intercepted it, basically ending the Atlanta game. Ryan hasn't taken that next step yet, despite the fact that everyone expects him too. Clearly he is most comfortable when he's got a strong running game, and can throw the play-action pass and slowly move the ball. When the Falcons fall behind and when he doesn't have a running threat, he's just not very effective.

Week 6 vs CAR - Matt Ryan took a backseat to the running game in this one as he used to. The formula worked well for Atlanta. It allowed Ryan to exploit the Panthers with play action, notably on his touchdown pass to FB Ovie Mughelli on a rollout at the goal line. Ryan was pressured at times but the offensive line gave him good protection overall. Ryan stood in as he was being creamed to complete a key pass to Harry Douglas on third down in the fourth quarter. He used his cadence to good effect to make the defense jump offside a couple of times. Ryan scored a rushing touchdown of his own on a 1-yard QB sneak to take the lead for Atlanta. In all, he did enough to win the game but clearly this team has an issue as far as agreeing on their identity. Without Julio Jones it is the Turner show, but Ryan appears to be a middling quarterback whatever the case.

Week 7 at DET - Matt Ryan had a very shaky day as neither QB on the field could get into a comfortable rhythm. Ryan started off poorly as he threw an INT that was as a result of just forcing the ball on third down and a silly decision. Ryan got roughed up heavy in this game also. He got two personal fouls called against him early in the game as Suh and co. gave him a warm welcome to Ford field. Ryan overshot many of his passes and was not accurate with the ball for most of the game. Ryan missed WR White open deep and was hit a lot as he dropped back. Ryan did make a terrific touch pass to White later in the game on a fade route with just enough air. Ryan also enjoyed a nice running game which he leaned on a lot to keep the pass rush honest and used off of PA to find guys running down the middle. Ryan showed his toughness as he returned the game very quickly after getting knocked out of the game. He threw another interception late in the game as he simply lost control of a ball over the middle which went too high and was easily picked off. Ryan did not do well vs. the Blitz and his offensive line could not keep Detroit's front 7 off him for long.

Week 9 at IND - Matt Ryan's numbers are impressive in this game but he owes a lot to WR Jones and relied on big plays to put up points in this game. Ryan looked very shaky at times in this game and without the big plays, his performance overall would have been bad. Ryan threw a lot of passes that seemed to lack any velocity on outside throws and many were almost picked off as a result. He did throw one pass straight to a defender near his own goaline that resulted in a pick 6, Ryan simply failed to see the CB that completely read his eyes all the way. Ryan's first touchdown came on a deep downfield pass with a high arc that somehow WR Jones managed to come up with as he was not particularly open. Ryan's second touchdown came soon after as he simply fired a slant to WR Jones who used his elite speed to run away from everybody and continued to make QB Matt Ryan's stat sheet look very impressive. He also scored on PA roll out on the goal line where he had more than enough time to hit TE Gonzalez in the back of the endzone. The Colts never troubled the Falcons who always had a commanding lead and the performance of rookie WR Jones was huge for how it allowed them to play with such a commanding lead. Ryan only had one pick but could have easily had 3. Although he was involved in some terrific plays, his receivers did a lot of the work for him and they began to lean heavily on the running game towards the end.

Week 10 vs NO - Matt Ryan had 52 pass attempts and managed to rack up some fairly big numbers on Sunday vs. the Saints. The Falcons did try to fit the running game in too however and Ryan used this and PA to his advantage to get some quick strikes over the middle of the field. Ryan was inaccurate in the redzone however and this led to a lot of FG's which ultimately proved to be their demise and fantasy owners demise as he lost out on a lot of touchdown opportunities. Ryan got a big touchdown from his RB/FB Snelling. Ryan simply checked down the ball to Snelling who turned into a beast and powered his way over the goal line for the score. Ryan found White open in the middle of the field after PA many times and fitted a great ball in between two defenders to Gonzalez for his second touchdown pass. Ryan really liked to throw over the middle of the field on Sunday and rarely threw to the outside. As a result, Gonzalez and slot WR Douglas had a big day. Gonzalez dominated one on one coverage over the middle with power and doesn't look his age at all. Ryan began to heavily involve WR Douglas in the second half and his performance really enabled the Falcons to go into overtime. Douglas was a huge weapon over the middle of the field and had so many catch and run plays where the Saints almost forgot about him and paid the price. Ryan's performance was still shaky however as should have been picked off late game but two Saints players ran into each other and broke up the pass. Ryan had a chance to win this game as he tried to get the ball deep to Douglas twice. His arm strength failed him however as he under threw WR Douglas who had a step on his DB's in coverage. The only INT he had was not his fault as WR White dropped the pass and fell it behind him into the hands of a Saints defender.

Week 11 vs TEN - Matt Ryan was consistent and productive against the Titans on Sunday, protecting the ball well and spreading the ball around to different receivers. More impressively, Ryan seemed attuned to attacking the defense wherever it was weakest. The Titans rotated in different packages and players yet Ryan consistently found the openings in zone-coverage and the mis-matches in man coverage. Ryan's best throw came on a 43 yard pass to Roddy White. On the play, Ryan threw a high arcing pass down the right sideline to a streaking White. The ball floated in between two defenders hitting White in stride. Otherwise, Ryan chose to throw the ball quickly to Harry Douglas or Tony Gonzales over the middle or Roddy White on quick outs and drag routes. The Titans did not sack Ryan, which is a testament to the Falcons effective use of play-action as well as Ryan's mastery of the offensive game plan. His throws were crisp and on target and he showed deft touch on a number of difficult throws in to zone coverage. On one such throw to Douglas, Ryan used play action before placing nice touch on a throw between three converging defenders.

Week 12 vs MIN - Matt Ryan had a fantastic game where he made a lot of teammates look good and really gave a superbly consistent performance throughout the game. Ryan missed an open Douglas early but this was about the worst he played all game. Ryan was decisive and had a very quick release which allowed him to avoid taking any sacks. He used TE Gonzalez a lot vs. the blitz and has used this rapport with his TE all year to ensure a solid check down option that prevents sacks and gives good yards at the same time when needed. Ryan didn't have to do too much work for his first touchdown pass as a slant to WR Douglas turned into a big play. Douglas broke a tackle and scampered into the endzone as he ran away from tacklers. Ryan was able to use PA well with his running game. He almost had WR White deep for a big play but slightly overthrew him. Ryan was very accurate on third down and kept many drives alive with clutch throws all over the field to pick up key first downs which were crucial to his success. Ryan threw a high and somewhat difficult pass to the back of the endzone for WR White but he was able to keep his feet in bounds for Ryan's 2nd TD pass. Ryan worked the middle of the field all game and MIN could never get off the field on third down. He almost lost the ball on a bizarre play where he lost the ball but it was recovered by ATL. Ryan was given a lot of time from his offensive line and used this to hit White deep downfield which set up his third touchdown pass. The Falcons were right on the goal line and Ryan simply fired a pass short to his TE Palmer, a very tough play to defend. Ryan make a lot of clutch throws, especially on third down and did not turn over the ball which should keep all his fantasy owners, coaches and fans happy.

Week 13 at HOU - Matt Ryan was off-target all game until it counted. And when he finally did get it going, his receivers did him no favors by dropping balls at key moments in the game. Early on, Ryan overthrew receivers like he had a tailwind behind him. He had a number of throws in the middle of the field that might have been picked off had the Texans not been rotating double coverage to the outside where Roddy White and Julio Jones were running deep route after deep route. Ryan's best passes were indeed long throws. On a 26 yard gain to Julio Jones, he perfectly placed a high-arcing ball between two defenders and the sideline. His best throw of the day came on the game's final play. Ryan took the snap and lofted a perfect pass to Julio Jones in the end zone. The ball was away from three nearby defenders in a place that only Jones could catch it. Unfortunately, his rookie receiver dropped the ball thus ending the game. Ryan has not looked as crisp as expected in some time. He mixes brilliant throws with prolonged periods of mediocrity. While the Falcons remain in the playoff race, they aren't going to go very far in the season's latter quarter if Ryan doesn't start extending drives with more on-target passing.

Week 14 at CAR - Matt Ryan had a near flawless game when he wasn't under pressure from the Panthers defensive front. Despite being stifled early, Ryan remained calm and applied a surgeon-like touch to his game, identifying mismatches and exploiting them. Ryan played games with the defense on occasion, changing the play and changing it again in response to a defensive audible. Ryan got the ball out of his hands quickly and gave his receivers a chance to make plays after the catch. His four touchdown passes were representative of his good game. The first was a corner route in the red zone to Roddy White; the defender in coverage let White go and the receiver capitalised. Ryan's second scoring strike came on a wheel route to Jacquizz Rodgers, who got free from the LB in coverage. His third was a strike to Julio Jones, who stretched over the plane of the goal line for a score. And his final touchdown pass was the game-sealer as he hit Jones on a hitch route and the receiver did the rest, turning up the field for a 75-yard score. Ryan's veteran presence in this game allowed the Falcons to come back from the early deficit.

Week 15 vs JAX - Ryan's evening was just another day in the office throwing for 224 yards and 3 touchdowns; most of Ryan's damage was done in the first half. Ryan seems to have complete grasp and control of the offense making adjustments and calls at the line on every play. Ryan's first touchdown came on a throw underneath to a wide-open Julio Jones in stride allowing the freak athlete to turn up field and turn a five-yard gain into a 29-yard touchdown. All of Ryan's pass attempts were short to intermediate throws never really asked to force the issue based on the games flow. Matt Ryan did however miss a couple throws to Roddy White for td's once missing an easy back shoulder end zone pass and another ball was over thrown in the end because of early in route stumble from the all pro wide receiver.

Week 16 at NO - Ryan's night started out quite effectively completing numerous efficiently thrown balls short to intermediately down the field. What turned out to be his only touchdown of the evening, a well-thrown ball under pressure in between the backers and secondary allowing Julio Jones to do the rest of the damage falling up field for a 21-yard touchdown. The evening started out with all the makings of a shoot-out but the Falcon's were forced to turn one-dimensional vastly affecting the strengths of Ryan and the overall team. Ryan had plenty of opportunities in the red zone only to have the drives fizzle out. The offensive line did relatively well protecting Ryan all night, a huge factor that could've drastically affected the quarterback's production negatively. Another key worth noting quite a few throws down field were under thrown taking away large production and touchdowns off the board.

Week 17 vs TB - Really didn't have to do much as he showed throwing a wounded duck on a 3rd and 11 on the 1st drive of the football game. That wounded duck managed to find it's way into the hands of Roddy White for a big first down. The touchdown throw to Julio Jones in the 1st quarter was a simple short pass on a crossing route inside the red zone. He hits his mark but he isn't exactly cutting the defense to shreds. Ryan is smart though and he allows his receivers to make big plays and puts the ball where they can go up and cash in on the defenses. The game was 35-0 with over 10 minutes left in the 2nd quarter so the Falcons decided to shut Ryan down for most of the 2nd half which was a wise decision.

Week 18 at NYG - Matt Ryan was largely ineffective in this game as the Giants front four was in his face from the first snap to the very last. Ryan completed some simple passes on three- and five-step drops, but rarely challenged the Giants secondary down the field. Ryan's offensive tackles were often beaten off the snap, meaning he was forced to step up. When he did, his best option was a check down on most passing attempts. The Falcons could not establish any semblance of a rushing attack, putting more pressure on Ryan's shoulders. Ultimately the pressure proved too much for the fourth year passer, who needs more help -- especially on the offensive line -- to make this offense successful in the playoffs.