With the start of the Matt Ryan era in 2008, it seems like the Falcons have owned an automatic bid to the playoffs.
As a rookie, Ryan guided the Falcons to an 11-5 record and a wild-card berth. The team went to the playoffs in four of his first five seasons, was the No. 1 seed twice and went to the NFC Championship game after the 2012 season.
But with the Falcons (6-9) set to close out the regular season against the Buccaneers (5-10) at 1 p.m. Sunday at Raymond James Stadium, there is no playoff berth at stake this year.
For the fifth time in Ryan’s 11 seasons, his team will not advance to the postseason. This will be his third losing record.
“That’s the one thing that you learn, playing as long as I have, is that it’s difficult to win games and get the job done consistently,” Ryan told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday. “We had some good teams early in my career. We’ve had some good teams at different points.”
Under former coach Mike Smith, the offense was built around power running back Michael Turner and a play-action passing attack as Ryan learned the nuances of the NFL.
In his second season, the Falcons went 9-7 and missed the playoffs. Ryan missed two of the losses with a nasty turf-toe injury. While the Falcons didn’t go to the playoffs, it was the first time in franchise history the Falcons posted back-to-back winning seasons.
Over the next three seasons, the Falcons went to the playoffs and lost to two eventual Super Bowl winners (Green Bay and New York Giants) and another NFC Super Bowl representative (San Francisco).
The Falcons had arrived as a NFC contender and thought 2013 would be their season. They coaxed tight end Tony Gonzalez out of retirement, signed running back Steven Jackson to take over for Turner and signed defensive end Osi Umenyiora to take over for John Abraham.
Those moves all backfired. There were injuries, most notably to wide receiver Julio Jones after Game 5. The offensive line, that Peter Konz was supposed to anchor at center, didn’t hold up. The Falcons went 4-12. After they went 6-10 the following season, Smith, the coach with the most wins in team history (66-46), was fired.
Dan Quinn, who was Seattle’s defensive coordinator, was hired and went 8-8 his first season. The team went 11-5 in his second year, won the NFC South and went to the Super Bowl.
The Falcons have been on a steady decline since they took the 28-3 lead against the New England in Super Bowl LI and have not been able to reverse the drop.
In 2017, the Falcons went 10-6, but lost in the divisional round as favorites to eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia.
The Falcons figured to be contenders again this season, but like in 2013, the injuries mounted and the offensive line did not hold up.
But this season feels more like 2009, when the Falcons were able to quickly rebound and get back into the playoffs. The 2013-14 collapse was structural and deep-rooted in bad offensive line decisions and re-shaping of the defense.
“Our record is what it is, ultimately that speaks to who you are,” Ryan said. “But we’ve been closer and had some opportunities to win football games and have outcomes be different. I’m optimistic about our guys and where we are at.”
Ryan will not use the injuries as an excuse. But he does recognize that the Falcons had four one-score losses, to Philadelphia, Cincinnati, New Orleans and Dallas.
“Those are the ones that you have to find ways to win,” Ryan said. “That’s the difference from the years that we’ve made the playoffs and the years we’ve been in contention, you find ways in those games.
“You’re going to have four games that went the opposite way. Where you’ve found a way to get on top in those tight ones. Frankly, we weren’t able to do that this year and that’s why we are where we’re at.”
The 2013 and 2014 seasons were the low points of Ryan’s career.
“As a player, you’re so week-to-week that you’re mindset, you don’t let all of that other crap come into play,” Ryan said of the lost seasons. “You just focus on trying to do the best that you can with the group that you have that week going against the group that you’re going against. I think that’s more of your mindset as a player. It’s less long-term. It’s a more narrow focus.”
In 2015, Ryan and offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan clashed until they finally reached a comfort zone that culminated with the Super Bowl trip.
Now, the Falcons and Ryan likely are facing more change after not reaching the playoffs.
Ryan has gone out of his way to compliment offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian after recent games.
After last week’s win at Carolina, Ryan noted that wide receivers Calvin Ridley and Mohamed Sanu’s touchdowns were great calls, and that both players went into the end zone untouched from 75 and 44 yards out.
With Quinn promising to evaluate coaching and personnel after the regular season, Ryan was asked about Sarkisian.
“I’m not worried about that right now,” Ryan said. “In all honesty, it’s about trying to find a way to get a win and (Steve) Sarkisian has done a good job.
“He’s put us in a good position to be successful as players. It’s our job to go out there and make the plays. I’m not worried about that right now.”
It’s noteworthy that Ryan didn’t say “great” position to be successful.
Ryan has had four offensive coordinators over his 11 seasons starting with Mike Mularkey (2008-11), Dirk Koetter (2012-14), Kyle Shanahan (2015-16) and Sarkisian (2017-present).
Ryan is going to miss the playoffs this year, but he plans to be back soon. Like next season.
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