DEL.ICIO.USFalcons add to Ryan’s repertoire
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sunday, November 16, 2008
More than halfway into his rookie season, the Falcons don’t mind getting a little more creative with quarterback Matt Ryan.
In Sunday’s 24-20 loss to Denver, they ran him on a naked bootleg on third-and-1. It worked for a first down and eight yards more. They lined him up wide on one play in the first half, and let him block downfield. The play lost yards, but Ryan got to give cornerback Josh Bell a little of his business.
Pouya Dianat/pdianat@ajc.com
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan lined up as a wide receiver on a direct snap to running back to Jerious Norwood on a Wildcat-formation in the first quarter.
But just as they add a few more wrinkles to his repertoire, Ryan reminds that underneath it all, he’s still a little baby-faced.
Ryan threw a rare interception at a key moment in the third quarter to swing the momentum back to Denver. The turnover set up a field goal for the Broncos to take a 17-13 lead to start the fourth quarter.
It was Ryan’s first interception in five games at the Georgia Dome this season and he was lucky not to have another.
The interception could have been returned for a touchdown by Dre’ Bly if not for a good tackle by Roddy White. And an almost-interception shortly thereafter could have been six points for Denver if linebacker Jamie Winborn had kept his hands (and eye) on the ball.
Yes, there are “ifs” there. But as Ryan is learning, there’s a fine line between good and bad in the NFL.
The very same play Ryan threw the interception on worked for a first down on third-and-6 in the first quarter. In that case, safety Marquand Manuel came full bore up the middle on a blitz. Ryan got rid of the ball with just enough on it to hit White for a 9-yard gain and a first down.
The second time around — with cornerback Jack William coming on a blitz — Denver was ready.
“Good job by the defense,” White said. “They read it. They’d seen it before. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice …”
Ryan had completed 104 passes this year at the Georgia Dome without being intercepted. He had reason to feel comfortable making the aggressive play. He also had reason to regret it afterward.
“You have to be smart and make better decisions,” Ryan said. “That led to points, so anytime you have a turnover as a quarterback and it leads to points, it’s frustrating.”
Ryan completed 20-of-33 passes for 250 yards but watched his streak of games with a touchdown pass end at five in a row. The interception was his sixth on the season, next to 11 touchdowns.
Denver succeeded in doing what a lot of teams aim to do against the Falcons: blitz the rookie quarterback and rattle him. At least they did for one play.
“We put pressure on him, but Matt is a great quarterback,” Bly told reporters afterward. “It’s crazy that it is only his first year. He’s tremendously poised.”
Ryan gave a little credence to Bly’s compliment in his post-game comments, when he pointed out he still saw a play like that, in the heat of an all-out blitz, as a missed opportunity.
“I wish I could have made some better throws,” Ryan said. “Because when they do play cover zero, they give you an opportunity to make some plays.”
Left guard Justin Blalock, used to protecting Ryan on the field, took it into the post-game locker room as well. He said that one play didn’t make the difference in the game.
“There were lots of other things that we left out on the field today,” Blalock said. “Taking a chance to make a play, it’s not a big deal. Two times we were down kicking field goals. You turn those to seven points, it’s a completely different ball game.”
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