Falcons Legend Matt Ryan Eager to Resolve ‘Unfinished Business’ in New Executive Role

Ryan, who played 14 seasons with the Falcons, joined the team as president of football.

Former quarterback Matt Ryan smiles prior to the game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Oct. 3, 2024. Todd Kirkland/Getty Images

New Atlanta Falcons President of Football Matt Ryan has unfinished business with the team.

Ryan was a Falcons legend as a quarterback, but never won a championship in his 14 seasons with the team. Now that he is running the operations of the team, he is committed to building a roster that can reach the promised land.

“It’s home, it really is,” Ryan said during a Jan. 13 news conference. “The people in this city have made it home, the fans of the Falcons have made it home, and the people of this organization have made it home, and to be able to come back and be a part of it, albeit in a different way, but to be a part of it is incredibly exciting for me.”

Ryan was drafted by the Falcons out of Boston College with the third overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft. He spent 14 seasons with the team. In that time, he won the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2008, NFL MVP and Offensive Player of the Year in 2016; he was a four-time Pro Bowler and a First Team All-Pro in 2016. He is the Falcons’ career and single-season leader in passing yards, completions, and touchdowns.

Ryan offered a message to the fans.

“My mission since I was drafted has never changed: it is to help this organization do everything it can to be champions and to win championships,” he said.

“There is a sense of unfinished business of, you know, we were close at times, and we had some success here and there. But I truly believe we’re going to get there and I have full faith in the people that we have in this building, and the folks that are going to be coming into this building are going to help us get there.”

The unfinished business is a wound that cuts deep for Falcons fans. Amid his MVP season, Ryan led the Falcons to Super Bowl LI, where they led the New England Patriots 28-3 in the third quarter. But Tom Brady and the Patriots came roaring back and won the game 34-28 in overtime.

After one year with the Indianapolis Colts, Ryan retired and spent three years with CBS as a broadcast analyst. He said he missed contributing to winning football games on Sunday, which his new role will allow him to take part in.

“It’s tough when you’re done ... especially when you’ve done it for such a long time,” he said. “You miss some of that, being around the team or the locker room, but you miss the competitiveness, the result, the nature of being prepared and doing everything you can and then laying it all on the line. ... But [being back with a team] does get your juices flowing and that is one of the things that I’m excited about.”

Ryan’s first big responsibility will be leading the Falcons’ search for a new head coach and general manager. Ryan said he was looking for two people who view the game similarly and will work well together.

He also stressed that he was not there to do either one’s job.

“I’m not trying to call plays,” he said of the head coach. “I’m not trying to run your offense. I’m not trying to pull a Phil Rivers and come back and play.”

He stressed that the GM role would remain the same as it has been for the team in the past.

“The faster everybody gets on the same page and the faster we get to know each other and the faster we create really strong working relationships, the better our chances of being successful on the field are,” he said.