Ryan’s value goes beyond stats
FLOWERY BRANCH — Matt Ryan is serving as both quarterback and unofficial assistant coach in his 10th NFL training camp with the Atlanta Falcons.
Either way, he’s a team leader.
Coming off a season in which he was voted league MVP and NFL Offensive Player of the Year by The Associated Press, Ryan has never been more established as a team leader. He enjoyed his best season in 2016, setting personal highs for passing yards and touchdowns while leading the Falcons to just their second appearance in the Super Bowl in franchise history.
The leadership shows in Ryan’s one-on-one teaching moments with rookie wide receivers Reggie Davis, Marvin Hall and Josh McGee. For Ryan, it’s about precision, and that’s the lesson for the rookies.
“It’s a part that he’s good at,” Falcons head coach Dan Quinn said Sunday. “He’s really clear on where he expects the player to be for the throw. For the player, it’s ‘I know Matt needs to put the ball here, so I can’t cut the route short.’ It’s that player-to-player communication that is so critical. … He’s so good at it.”
Ryan said it is “critical” to take advantage of those opportunities in training camp, when there is time “to really focus on ourselves.”
“I think experience for me has helped me get to the place where I can explain to the young guys ‘You know, even though we didn’t complete that long one, the ball was where it needed to be. You need to get yourself into that position,’” he said. “And also, there are times they run a pretty good route and I’ve got to put it in a better spot.”
The leadership shows in other ways, too, including his competitive fire, which recently emerged in an 11-on-11 drill. Ryan spoke up when he didn’t think the offense was being given a fair shake on a penalty call.
“It was a penalty that was marked off, and they went to third down and marked off the penalty,” Quinn said. “He was like ‘No, no, no. You don’t get both. You don’t get to mark it off and have the penalty. It’s second down.’ … He was like ‘Come on, man!’”
Ryan’s competitiveness even shows during PingPong games in the locker room.
At age 32, he said he feels “pretty good,” with training camp less of a grind than in his early years.
“You don’t have to go two times a day in pads like we did when I was younger,” he said. “That part of it is pretty nice. But my body feels really good. I felt like I came into camp into great shape.”
Ryan has started 122 consecutive games since missing two games in 2009, his second season. It’s the third-longest active streak by a quarterback in the league, behind the Giants’ Eli Manning (211) and the Chargers’ Philip Rivers (185).
Collins suspended
For the second straight year, Falcons cornerback Jalen Collins will be suspended for the start of the season for a violation of the league’s policy on performance enhancers. But this time, the suspension carries a bigger bite.
The NFL announced Sunday that Collins has been suspended without pay for the first 10 games. He was suspended for the first four games in 2016. A second-round pick in 2015, Collins has said he failed drug tests in college at LSU.
The suspension will be costly to the Falcons’ defensive depth, an offseason concern the team had worked to address. Collins started six games last season and had two interceptions, moving into the lineup after star cornerback Desmond Trufant was placed on injured reserve with a torn pectoral muscle.
Trufant and Robert Alford are the projected starting cornerbacks this season.
Cutler to Dolphins
DAVIE, Fla. — Jay Cutler has decided to postpone retirement for the chance to be Ryan Tannehill’s replacement.
The former Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears quarterback agreed to terms Sunday on a contract with the Miami Dolphins, a person familiar with the situation said. The person confirmed the agreement to the AP on condition of anonymity because the Dolphins weren’t expected to announce the deal until Cutler signed the $10 million, one-year deal.
Cutler will compete with Matt Moore for a starting job while Tannehill remains out with a left knee injury that could sideline him for the entire season.
Dolphins coach Adam Gase was offensive coordinator for the Bears when Cutler had a careerbest quarterback rating with them in 2015. Gase joined Miami in 2016, and Cutler parted with Chicago in March after eight seasons.
Cutler, 34, drew little interest in the spring as a free agent, perhaps partly because of the former Vanderbilt University star’s prickly personality and tendency for turnovers.
“I guess I know a different guy than what everybody else portrays,” Gase said in May, when Cutler was hired by Fox as an analyst to work on its No. 2 NFL team.