Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan took a routine snap from center James Stone, but instead of dropping back to pass, he sprinted to his right to hand the ball to running back Devonta Freeman.
It’s a scene that will be witnessed a lot in the Falcons’ new outside-zone running scheme.
On other plays, Ryan sprinted to the back, made a play-action fake and come up ready to throw.
Those are just a few of the new wrinkles unveiled at the team’s first open OTA — noncontact drills — Tuesday as Ryan tries to get comfortable in the first new offense of his professional career.
“There will be a little bit more running than kind of in the past,” said Ryan, who’ll be asked to execute those stretch running plays and bootlegs around the passing pocket.
Ryan, who turned 30 on May 17, believes that he’s in excellent condition to take on the added workload.
“I feel like I’ve tried to really work on it my career to get everything that I can out of my body,” Ryan said. “Going into season eight, I feel better than I have, more athletic and I’m moving better than I really have.”
Ryan doesn’t believe that his age is a factor.
“A little more sore in the morning I guess,” Ryan said. “I feel really good once I get going, I feel really good. It’s just an age.”
Early in his career under offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey, Ryan rolled out some. He was even called to roll to his left and throw across his body at times.
But for the past three seasons under offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter, Ryan mostly dropped back and fired away from a shotgun formation, as he averaged 631.3 pass attempts.
New offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan insisted that Ryan is a fit for any offense and has not hesitated to put him on the move, as he did Matt Schaub in Houston, Robert Griffin III in Washington and Brian Hoyer and Johnny Manziel in Cleveland.
Ryan was under siege over the past two seasons behind injury-riddled offensive lines. He was sacked 44 times in 2013 and 31 times in 2014. In addition to adding a running game, the Falcons plan to put Ryan on the move so that he’s not a sitting duck for opposing pass-rushers.
“Trying to keep the pocket clean is the first step in the passing game,” Ryan said. “I think one of the things that we’ll probably see more of than we did we have in the past is the movement. That’s been Kyle’s background.”
With several players rehabbing from offseason surgeries, the offensive line is still under construction under new offensive line coach Chris Morgan, a disciple of Seattle assistant head coach/offensive line Tom Cable. The unit should also benefit from the new scheme and its attacking style.
“That helps the offensive line,” Ryan said. “When you change where a defense has to rush to get after the passer, that makes it a little bit more difficult for those guys. That will be a little different, but we are working through that right now.”
Ryan isn’t the only offensive star working through some major changes.
Wide receivers Roddy White and Julio Jones have been on hand working hard to pick up the new passing game and new blocking assignments.
“They’ve got a lot more to learn than they have in years past,” Ryan said. “Roddy, he knew our system inside-and-out. So this year, he has a lot of new things. New depths, new routes and new verbiage.”
Because White was so comfortable in the old system, he picked his spots with his “voluntary” attendance.
“With the new offense, I think he feels like he needs to be here,” Ryan said. “That’s been really good. A lot of the younger guys get to look at what he does to get ready for practice and to get out there and compete.”
White took Jones with him to Arizona to work out with Larry Fitzgerald, as he has in season’s past.
“Julio has been awesome this offseason,” Ryan said. “I mean working out, he looks great. He’s out here running and showing these guys how to run routes. He’s done a lot of teaching this year, which is really good. He’s picked this offense up probably as fast as anybody.”
Also, Ryan has embraced the signing of tight end Jacob Tamme, a veteran pass-catching tight end. He also noted the signing of tight end Tony Moeaki and the return of Mickey Shuler. It appears that incumbent Levine Toilolo will be in a fight to retain his roster spot when training camp opens in late July.
“Those guys have done a really good job so far,” Ryan said.
It’s no secret that Ryan missed future Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez dearly last season.
“It’s a different scheme, and we are going to use the tight ends differently than we have in the past,” Ryan said. “Those guys are adjusting to that really well.”
Whatever the Falcons do, Ryan knows he’ll be on the move.
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