Last night’s firing of Dan Quinn and Thomas Dimitroff was the start of a long-overdue house cleaning for the Atlanta Falcons. Their owner, Arthur Blank, finally did what was expected of him after the 2018 and 2019 seasons. He held on to a defensive-minded head coach that was in charge of a terrible defense, and a general manager who was no longer hitting on his draft picks. His loyalty to a coach and GM that led them to a super bowl appearance has seemingly hindered a chance for a quick rebuild for this team. Now the team heads into a search with many uncertainties as to the future of the roster. While the defense is porous, they still generally have the same record breaking offense that led them to win the NFC in 2016. With future hall of fame WR Julio Jones and other studs such as Calvin Ridley, Russell Gage, Todd Gurley, and Hayden Hurst, they will most likely have to break up this bunch in order to recoup picks to accelerate the rebuild. Yet their quarterback’s trade value is the biggest question mark of them all.
When you mention Matt Ryan’s name, it’s usually synonymous with other talented quarterbacks like Philip Rivers and Matthew Stafford, who have yet to win a championship. He may even be considered a choke artist, most notably for being a part of ‘28-3.’ For the most part, the blame for Super Bowl LI can be put on Kyle Shanahan’s shoulders, as well as the defense. Shanahan did what any team needs to properly do against the Patriots, keep the foot on the pedal and to keep attacking, but the execution of many of the players around Ryan was subpar, most notably Devonta Freeman’s missed block that caused Ryan to fumble. Later in the game, when the Falcons should have begun running the ball and churning clock, Shanahan kept calling pass plays, which stopped the clock and gave the ball back to New England for their game-tying drive.
It would take a whole other article to summarize who is to blame for the greatest collapse in NFL history, but there is one big takeaway from that season: Matt Ryan got them there. In his MVP season, he nearly put up 5,000 yards, had an NFL record 9.3 yards per attempt, and led the league in passer rating. Matt Ryan carried the team in 2016, and has been carrying the team every year since with his great offensive performances, usually being let down by bad defense. He consistently nets over 4,000 yards a season and rarely misses games. Even with Julio being their best player, Matt Ryan is still their most valuable trade asset currently, given the importance of the quarterback position in today’s game.
With this in mind, as Atlanta begins their rebuild, it would be smart for them to think about trading Matt Ryan to a complete team that is looking for the quarterback to get them over the hump. He could probably get them a second rounder or two, though they will start the bidding at a first. They might be able to get a first for Julio Jones and sell Ryan for less, since Calvin Ridley is a WR1 on most rosters, though it depends on where the Falcons and other teams finish. Good fits for the veteran QB, according to PFF, would probably be Indianapolis, if Rivers retires, and Chicago, depending on if they keep Nagy or not. Another option would be reuniting with Shanahan in San Francisco if they choose to part with Garappolo. Dallas is now a possibility as well given the uncertainty with Dak.
Regardless, it’s all speculative at this point. They probably will not trade Ryan if they finish outside the top 5 in the draft order, yet with how the team looks currently, it’s hard to see how they do not. Nonetheless, the talk of trading Matt Ryan began at the end of last year and has only picked up since their abysmal start. If the Falcons want to accelerate their rebuild, and return to playing well in two years after the Bucs and Saints regress, they would need to go forth with an extreme and swift rebuild, and it should start with their most valuable asset.
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