Matt Ryan Announces NFL Retirement in Special Video Addressed to Falcons Fans

Ryan is retiring after a 15-year NFL career.

Feb 9, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Former quarterback Matt Ryan arrives before the Legends NFL Party. / Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Matt Ryan has retired after playing 15 NFL seasons. The 2016 NFL MVP announced he was hanging them up on Monday in a video address to fans of the Atlanta Falcons. Ryan spent the first 14 seasons of his career in Atlanta, so it was a fitting end to his fantastic career.

The Falcons made Ryan the third pick in the 2008 NFL draft and he went on to set break nearly every record for a quarterback in franchise history. He was the 2008 offensive rookie of the year, went to four Pro Bowls and named first-team All-Pro in 2016 to go along with his MVP award. The Boston College product more than lived up to his draft slot and might be the greatest player to don a Falcons uniform.

Video of his announcement is below.

From: Matt Ryan
To: Atlanta pic.twitter.com/JWhkNqHzdY

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) April 22, 2024

After 14 seasons, the Falcons traded Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts in March of 2022 in exchange for a third-round draft pick. He spent one disappointing season in Indy before he was cut in March of 2023. The 38-year-old remained unsigned during the 2023 season.

Ryan finishes his career ranked fifth in career completions (5,551), seventh in passing yards (62,792), eighth in passing yards per game (268.3), ninth in passing touchdowns (381), 13th in completion percentage (65.6), and 19th in passer rating (93.6). The one blemish on his record is never having won a championship, though he took the Falcons to Super Bowl LI. That game featured the New England Patriots coming back from a 28-3 second-half deficit to win 34-28 in overtime. We'll refrain from discussing it further, Falcons fans have been through enough.

Experts will debate Ryan's Hall of Fame worthiness over the next few years. Statistically, he seems to have the numbers and displayed remarkable consistency throughout his career.