FLOWERY BRANCH – The winningest quarterback and only league MVP in Atlanta Falcons history is headed to the TV booth for the 2023 NFL season.
But Matt Ryan - who ranks seventh in NFL history in career passing yards - quickly pointed out on social media Monday that he’s not retiring and plans to keep his football options wide open.
The former Falcons quarterback, who will turn 38 on May 17, is set to join CBS Sports as a NFL analyst next season. Although Ryan admitted that ‘it’s an honor to join this exceptional team at CBS Sports”, the 2016 MVP and four-time Pro Bowler also added the move is ‘not a retirement’ announcement after 15 NFL seasons.
The third pick in the 2008 draft, Ryan started all 16 games as a rookie -- earning offensive rookie of the year honors -- and led the Falcons to the playoffs. Over the next 13 seasons, Ryan started 208 games and was named league MVP in 2016 with 4,944 yards passing, 38 touchdowns and only seven interceptions.
Ryan has 62,792 career passing yards, seventh on the all-time list behind Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Ben Roethlisberger and Philip Rivers. He earned the nickname ‘Matty Ice’ for his last-game performances, leading the team to 38 comeback win and 46 game-winning scoring drives.
Ryan holds most of the franchise’s passing records -- passing yards, touchdowns, completions, attempts and passer rating. He led the Falcons to six playoff berths, including an NFC championship appearance after the 2012 season and the Super Bowl after his 2016 MVP season.
After the Falcons failed in their March 2022 pursuit of quarterback Deshaun Watson -- who was seeking a trade from the Texans and eventually ended up with the Browns -- they traded Ryan to the Colts for a third-round pick. Ryan had a rocky 4-7-1 season in Indianapolis in 2022, and was released by the franchise exactly two months ago on March 15. He’s holding out hope that market will open up for a veteran quarterback - while also starting a career in broadcasting.
“As one of the NFL’s marquee quarterbacks for the past 15 years, we’re thrilled to add Matt to our talented roster of NFL analysts,” Harold Bryant, CBS Sports executive producer and executive vice president of production, said in a news release. “He has played the game at the highest level ... (he) will bring a fresh perspective to CBS Sports. We look forward to Matt sharing his knowledge, insight and opinions with our viewers and bolstering our NFL coverage.”
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