Did Falcons 'Miss Boat' on Matt Ryan Trade Value?

The Atlanta Falcons traded Matt Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts nearly a year ago. Could they have gotten more for their franchise quarterback?

Jeremy Brener | Feb 17, 2023

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Atlanta Falcons

It's been nearly 11 months since the Atlanta Falcons traded Matt Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts.

Even though the Falcons have fully moved on from the Ryan era, Pro Football Focus is playing "Monday morning quarterback" on the deal, declaring Atlanta's hesitancy to deal Ryan sooner the franchise's biggest draft mistake in the past five seasons.

"If you’re not a fan of the Falcons or an NFL South rival, it may surprise you to know that Atlanta has been below .500 for the entire span covered by this article — five straight years of mediocrity or worse," PFF writes. "They refused to hit a hard reset after going 4-12 in 2020 and, in turn, held on to Matt Ryan past his usefulness in the trade market.

"With Carson Wentz returning a first-rounder in the same span, surely the former MVP who was only 35 years old after a rough 2020 season could have fetched the Falcons a pretty penny in a rebuild."

The Falcons acquired a third-round pick for Ryan, which turned into outside linebacker DeAngelo Malone, who looks promising after his first season in the league.

While the Falcons certainly could have pulled the trigger on a Ryan deal a year earlier and drafted a quarterback in 2021 like Justin Fields or Mac Jones, Atlanta is happy to be in the position it is in.

Now fully moved on from Ryan's contract, the Falcons have the second-most cap space of any team in the league and hopes to be one of the league's biggest spenders in free agency this year. Once the Falcons do something with the cap space, then we can make full judgment on whether Atlanta swung and missed on the Ryan trade.

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Published Feb 17, 2023

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.