Matt Ryan, who spent 14 seasons as the Falcons quarterback from 2008 to 2021, has returned to Atlanta to become the team’s president of football. Ryan will take over this newly created role to help get the team back to the playoffs for the first time since 2017.
Since stepping away from football after his one season with the Colts, Ryan spent time as an NFL analyst for CBS. Now, Ryan will have a very large role in Atlanta’s football decisions, but he doesn’t have any front office experience. What Ryan does have, though, is a 14-year relationship with team owner Arthur Blank.
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“I have full confidence and trust in Matt as we strive to deliver a championship caliber team for Atlanta and Falcons fans everywhere,” Blank said of the decision to hire Ryan.
After the announcement on Saturday, Ryan put out a statement on his decision to take the Falcons president of football position. While the former MVP acknowledged he has no experience in this aspect of football, he is ready and willing to dive in and take a “baptism by fire” approach to get this team back to where it should be.
“Arthur gave me the chance of a lifetime almost twenty years ago, and he’s done it again today. While I appreciate the time I had with the Colts and with CBS, I’ve always been a Falcon,” exclaimed Matt Ryan, the new President of Football in Atlanta. “It feels great to be home. I could not be more excited, grateful, or humbled by this new opportunity. I began my career with a singular goal, to do right by the Blank family, the Falcons organization, the City of Atlanta, and especially our fans. My commitment to the success of this franchise has not changed. I’m beyond ready to help write a new chapter of excellence.”
While with the Falcons, Ryan cemented himself as arguably the greatest Falcons player of all time, smashing every single quarterback record. He threw for a grand total of 59,735 yards in Atlanta with 367 touchdowns