Falcons Ryan Not an Elite Quaterback,Although Bank Statement Claims Otherwise

Atlanta Falcons Starting Quarterback in 2013

If a player’s bank statement was the best indicator of rank,Matt Ryan would easily be included among the elite. His five-year deal is the seventh richest contract in the NFL and the fifth among quarterbacks, according to Spotrac.com. But elite based on money as a measure of greatness is a country club ideal—that mentality does not work at the NFL level of play.

In football a quarterback gets labeled elite because of touchdown passes, wins (typically playoff wins, but huge clumps of regular-season wins can get a player to the elite level), a sort of moxie on the field that few have, and drive after successful drive, leading a team in every facet of the game.
Drew Breese is elite. So are Tom Brady, Payton Manning and Aaron Rodgers. But that’s where the list ends for quarterbacks playing the game. The problem is there’s no clearly defined way that lays out a course for how a quarterback becomes elite.

Matt Ryan on the field in 2008

After a seven-year audition as first-string quarterback, Ryan needs to step up or step aside. Author Blank and the Atlanta Falcons are just throwing money away on Ryan when they could draft or trade for a better quarterback. This franchise needs to wake up and check back into the world of reality.

Coming into the NFL a player has the dream of one day winning a Super Bowl ring. The faithful fans of Atlanta want to see their Falcons in a Super Bowl in the near future. After all, the team has not played in a Supper Bowl game since 1998 in Miami, Florida under the filed   leadership of Chris Chandler, who is long gone from the league now.

Well, Falcon players and coaches it’s  time to raise up and get back to the Super Bowl. After watching Ryan play  in the 2013 season, I would simple say he is clearly not the player the team needs to win the  Super Bowl. It’s  time to find a new starting QB.

The falcons rewarded Ryan with a new contract of $103.75 before the start of the 2013 campaign, paying him like an elite QB, but he has failed to show that he is an elite player on  field. Listen to the sports media or watching the sports shows on television or joining a conversation people talk sports, however few believe he is an elite. This is also a feeling shared by former teammate Tony Gonzales.
“Matt an excellent quarterback,” Gonzales explained, as reported by Seth Wickersham in ESPN The Magazine.“But he’s not elite. He’s this close. He’ll get there, but he has some learning to do.”

Ryan is coming off a horrible 2013 season, where he threw 26 touchdown passes and committed 21 turnovers. This veteran quarterback could not hit the broad side of a barn in 2013 if his life depend on it.  However, he was great throwing the ball to the players on the other teams. It was this type of play that frustrated Falcon fans and caused the organization to miss the playoffs last season.

Now the question is how long will the Falcons wait on Ryan to develop into the player, the organization him on the field  in order for this team to return to the Super Bowl game.

Many of the faithful fans are sick of waiting on Ryan and Atlanta to become a Super Bowl Caliber team. So the organization better move fast or cut their loses with Ryan.

As the 2014 draft has come and gone, it’s saddens me that the Falcons missed their opportunity to pick up a  quarterback, as there where many talented quarterbacks in this draft. The organization could have simple made a deal with one of the other NFL teams, to move up in the draft to snag a quarterback. Instead the higher-ups choose to fill a defensive need in their first draft pick of 2014.

A seven-year wait is long enough for any fan of professional football to see his team make the Super Bowl, so it time for Ryan to show his elite play  on the gridiron and lead the Falcons to a Super Bowl victory. Or Blank needs to show him the door and cut his lose, if he is unable to make a trade for him. Ryan needs to remember that his actions on the field speak louder than his excuse in the media for not getting the job done.

Atlanta needs to replace Ryan soon so the team can get to and win a Super Bowl. There are a lot of great quarterback around the league that would make a good replacement for Ryan. Some journalist in the media have mentioned Phillip Rivers of the San Diego Chargers as a replacement for the veteran  quarterback if Atlanta where to make a trade for him. While the recent draft had a number of excellent signal callers available. Maybe the Falcons should have taken a quarterback as one of their draft needs in 2014.

Ryan really needs to member that actions on the field speak louder than words. He needs to improve his play to become an elite quarterback or face the options of a backup role,being traded away from the ATL or being cut from the Falcons all together. And as a football fan I like cut him optionand finding a new quarterback.