Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan hasn’t needed to bounce back from many shaky performances in his five-plus seasons in the NFL.
But after throwing four interceptions and posting his fourth-lowest passer rating Sunday, Ryan will be in that unfamiliar position when the Falcons face the Carolina Panthers at 1 p.m. Sunday in Charlotte, N.C.
Against Arizona on Sunday, Ryan’s passer rating was 47.2. He had a 29.2 against Tampa Bay as a rookie, a 40.5 last season against Arizona (with five interceptions) and a 46.6 against New Orleans in 2009.
Each time, Ryan bounced back with a vengeance.
After the 29.2, he followed with a 120.6 in a 38-14 rout of Kansas City. After the 40.5, he recorded a 110 in a 24-23 win over Tampa Bay. After the 46.6, he had an 81.1 in a 31-17 win over Washington.
Ryan, who on Oct. 20 against Tampa Bay set a career-high mark with a 148.4 passer rating, has a plan for bouncing back.
“You are ready to get back on that practice field and get going quickly after you play poorly,” Ryan said.
What Ryan doesn’t plan to do is dwell on the interceptions.
“I’ve played bad before and I’ll play bad again, but it’s trying to eliminate those games and try to make them very few and very far in between,” Ryan said. “That’s my goal now, is to put that one behind us and get back to playing the way I can play.”
The way the offense functioned against the Cardinals troubled Ryan.
“We haven’t really been sloppy up until this point,” he said. “We haven’t played as well as we need to play, but we haven’t been sloppy. Last week, I think we were a little bit sloppy with the penalties and turnovers.”
It was the second time that Ryan has thrown four or more interceptions in a game. He threw five against the Cardinals last season.
“For whatever reason, in back to back years, Matt has turned the ball over against Arizona,” Falcons offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter said. “It’s uncharacteristic.”
With the defense leaking yards, the Falcons fell behind 21-6 late in the second quarter. Ryan forced a couple of passes with the team trying to rally back.
“A couple of those, he shouldn’t even tried to throw,” Koetter said. “He’s the first one to recognize that. The second that we got in the locker room, Matt was going through them. He knew what happened right away.
“He was in here (Monday) all day watching the tape. No one is a tougher critic on Matt than Matt. It was just very uncharacteristic of him. I wouldn’t expect it to happen again.”
Ryan was bound to throw some interceptions as he attempted a career-high 61 passes. He completed 34 for 301 yards.
“We don’t want to throw the ball 61 times a game, I can assure you of that,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “That’s not what we’re built to do. We are built to be able to run the ball when we have to.”
Also, Arizona’s defensive front attacked Ryan once the Cardinals held a lead. Ryan was sacked four times and hit 11.
“Pressure is the toughest thing on any quarterback,” Koetter said. “It usually doesn’t show up. When I mean pressure, I don’t mean the pressure of a blitz. But the pressure of being behind. There’s the pressure of being hit early in the game. Just the building up of pressure and he didn’t play as well of a game.”
With Julio Jones and Roddy White out with injuries, the Falcons spared Ryan the agony of losing another target this season when they didn’t part ways with tight end Tony Gonzalez at the trade deadline.
“He’s one of my favorite teammates and all-time favorite guys to be around,” Ryan said. “He certainly one of the best players on our team.”
In the absence of Jones and White, Ryan turned to wide receiver Harry Douglas, who has caught 19 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown.
“He’s stepped up and made a lot of plays for us,” Ryan said. “He’s been the bright spot the last two weeks. He’s played extremely well for us.”
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