Here’s what Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan had to say to the media at the Super Bowl on Wednesday:
(on his work ethic and preparation) "Yes, for sure. There's a lot of work to be done during the week to get yourself prepared and ready to play. I've got my routine. I like to sleep, so there might be somebody else in the building before me, but I'm there pretty late. I'm usually one of the last ones out of there, and so, I feel good about my routine. I feel about where I'm at and I feel like I know how to get myself prepared and ready to play."
(on the significance of establishing Julio Jones as an offensive threat on Sunday) "I think it's really important for us. He's such a huge part of what we do, in terms of creating explosive plays and changing how a defense is going to defend us. So, we'll get him the ball, for sure. I know (offensive coordinator) Kyle (Shanahan) will do a great job of formatting things and moving him around to get him in spots to make some plays, and I expect he'll have a great game."
(on Head Coach Dan Quinn's influence on him) "Dan has been super influential for me personally. He does such a great job of connecting with you on a personal level, understanding what makes you tick and what makes you go, and he has kind of nailed that with me. He has nailed that with everybody on our team. He's a great motivator. He also makes things feel real normal. That's probably one of his best attributes, is that regardless of the situation we're going into, he's really honest, really upfront, and he makes you feel real comfortable in all situations."
(on his process, development and MVP-caliber performance this season) "I think I've continued to improve throughout my career and work really hard to get the most out of myself. I think specifically this year, I made a few changes in terms of my offseason training program and work with Adam Dedeaux and Tom House out in California. I felt like that really helped me train the way that I needed to, but I also think just the addition of some of the players on our team, guys like Alex Mack coming into our offensive line and Taylor Gabriel, Mohamed Sanu and Aldrick Robinson at the wide receiver position. And you talk about two young tight ends for us – Josh Perkins and Austin Hooper. When you put a lot of talent around you, it makes it easier to make plays, and our supporting cast has done a great job this year."
(on what he did to correct turnover issues from last season) "Yes, I think that has been a huge part of our success, for sure. I think, for myself specifically, I think being more comfortable in the system, understanding exactly what we're trying to do, what Kyle's trying to do, being more familiar with certain situational calls that he's going to make, I think that has helped us. We've been much better in the red zone, as well. We had a ton of … I think we led the league in turnovers last year in the red zone and have been excellent in that department this year. So, those were the, really, two things that helped: really emphasizing being productive in the red zone, not giving them the ball in the red zone, and then number two, just being more comfortable in the system."
(on whether there are any concerns participating in the first major event since the controversy over the travel ban) "I hope it won't take away from the event. Obviously, the Super Bowl is really, really important for so many people throughout the county, whether it's players, fans, media or just casual fans that get into it for this weekend. So, I hope it won't affect anything, and I trust that law enforcement and everyone will do a great job."
(on how Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman impact the offense and complement each other and Matt Bryant's performance at the late stages of his career) "Yes, I'll start with Matt. Matt has been a teammate for a long time, and he has been so consistent and so good throughout the years. For him to get recognized this year individually for his first Pro Bowl, I couldn't be more happy for him. He deserves it. He has deserved it before. He's one of the guys that we rely on in critical situations. If you can just get the ball to the number that he talks about at the end-of-game situations, you just know that he's going to put it through the pipes. He has had a great season. I'm happy for him. I think his longevity and consistency speaks to how hard he works during the offseason, taking care of himself, working at his craft and the time and effort that he puts in during the season, as well. So, he has had a great year. Our running backs, Devonta and Tevin are two of best in the league. They complement each other so well. I think that the unique thing about us and about them is that they're both three-down backs. They're guys that can run the ball between the tackles. They catch the ball extremely well out of the backfield, and they're both are excellent in pass protection. It's rare that you have one guy on your roster like that, and we happen to have two that are really, really talented. That makes it difficult for a defense to account for those guys, because there's really no change with what we do with either of those guys in there. It doesn't allow for them to key in on certain things."
(on which aspects of the Falcons offense opponents have tried to negate and which parts of the game plan he anticipates New England will attack) "Well, I guess you never really know which way they're going to go. They've done a great job of mixing things up all season. I think that's one of the things that New England does extremely well, is playing week to week, and they can look very different on film week to week. As far as what we've seen this year. It has been a little bit of both. I think it depends on the personnel you're going against. If people really trust their secondary, I think they'll try to take away the run game, and maybe if they don't, they're going to try to take away some of those explosive plays that you might get with Julio (Jones). But we've kind of seen a little bit of both all year."
(on the low point and level of frustration during last season's 3-8 stretch after starting 5-0 and any advice he would share with his peers in the league) "I'm not really sure if you can pinpoint just rock bottom, but when you lose a number of games in a row, that's tough. It's tough on you. You put so much work into it, and to lose close games and to not get the results that you want, it's difficult. The advice is to just keep plugging, keep working and have the belief that your process is correct and that what you're doing is right and that if you continue to work at it, you're going to get the results that you want."
(on the role of the tight ends in Atlanta's offense) "Yes, for sure. Our tight ends probably don't get as much credit as they deserve, but they're incredibly important to our success. You talk about Levine Toilolo, I feel like every catch he has had this year has been an explosive play for us, and that's huge when he gets his opportunity and makes plays. He's outstanding in the run game. He's kind of the end-setter for us in the run game, does a great job of getting things going. And then our other two guys, the young guys, Austin Hooper's a guy that has been extremely comfortable from the first game of the year. He has come in and played well for us all year, and 'Perk,' Josh Perkins has come in when he has gotten his opportunity when Jacob (Tamme) got hurt, he has taken full advantage of it and made a great touchdown catch for us against Carolina and showed what he's capable of doing. He's a really good player, as well."
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