Falcons’ Ryan ignores MVP talk, but Quinn campaigns for him
Dolphins’ Tannehill does not practice
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Good luck trying to get Matt Ryan to discuss his MVP chances. His boss isn’t so shy. “If I had a vote for MVP, it would certainly be Matt,” Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn said Wednesday. “He’s had a fantastic year in a lot of ways.”
Ryan just finished up the best regular season of his career, leading the Falcons to a division championship and firstround bye in the playoffs. There is no doubt he is one of the top contenders for the NFL’s highest individual honor, usually included in the same breath with New England’s Tom Brady, Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers and Dallas rookie Ezekiel Elliott.
The Falcons have never had a player capture the MVP award.
Ryan shrugged off his chances, again showing his adept ability to scramble away from saying much of anything that will draw attention to himself. He truly is the ultimate team player, which is why the quarterback is so revered in the Atlanta locker room.
“It’s obviously nice to be mentioned, for sure,” Ryan said. “That’s special. But at the end of the day, we’ve got bigger things in front of us.”
As impressive as he’s been on the field, Ryan contributes just as much to the Falcons’ success when he’s away from the spotlight.
“There are so many things that don’t show up on the stat sheet,” Quinn said. “How many people he’s affected on our team. He’s a fantastic teammate. That’s one of the highest praises you can give to a ballplayer.”
DOLPHINS: Ryan Tannehill stood on the practice field Wednesday wearing a cap, T-shirt and knee brace, idly spinning a ball in his hands as he watched teammate Matt Moore throw.
That’s how Tannehill is preparing for Miami’s playoff game Sunday at Pittsburgh , where he will also likely be a spectator.
The Dolphins’ No. 1 quarterback sat out practice Wednesday, making it unlikely he’ll return from a sprained left knee for the team’s first postseason game since 2008.
“We may run out of time this week,” coach Adam Gase said.
Tannehill has missed the past three games. Moore, who is 2-1 as Tannehill’s replacement, will make his first career postseason start “unless something changes drastically here in the next two days or three days,” Gase said.
However, Gase said Tannehill’s knee improves a little every day, and it’s still possible Tannehill will practice this week. One workout — even Friday — might be enough to clear him for the game, Gase said.
COWBOYS: Dallas signed guard Jonathan Cooper, hoping the top 10 pick from 2013 can provide depth in the playoffs on the injury-plagued left side of the line.
La’el Collins has been out since Week 3 with a torn ligament in his right big toe but could be pulled off injured reserve for the divisional playoff Jan. 15. The Cowboys are the No. 1 seed in the NFC and have a first-round bye.
49ERS: San Francisco interviewed Buffalo interim coach Anthony Lynn on Wednesday for their head coach opening.
Lynn is the first candidate to interview with the Niners as they begin the process of finding the replacement for Chip Kelly.
The 49ers have also been linked to New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, Atlanta offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, Washington offensive coordinator Sean McVay, Miami defensive coordinator Vance Joseph and McDermott as possible head coach candidates.
BEARS: The chairman of the Bears insisted Wednesday he still has faith in coach John Fox and general manager Ryan Pace, even after the team’s worst season in several decades.
Chairman George McCaskey said he is “pleased” with the job Pace has done the past two years.
“I’m not a patient person but I promised (Pace) that I would be patient,” McCaskey said. “With all the adversity that we’ve had, I like the steady hand that he and John have had on the team.” PACKERS: Green Bay’s Quinten Rollins has been placed in the concussion protocol following his scary injury in the win last week over Detroit, while fellow Packers cornerback Damarious Randall practiced Wednesday.