Sarkisian’s football IQ impresses QB Ryan

After

FLOWERY BRANCH — 10 days of training camp, Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan has already seen some growth in his relationship with new offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian.

While the NFL MVP said he’s had a great relationship with Sarkisian from the start, the time the two have spent together has allowed them to learn how the other thinks.

“We’ve gotten a better feel for how he calls plays when we get into our team periods and we’re moving the ball, just playing football,” Ryan said. “I’ve got a better feel for his demeanor, how things come to him. So I’ve been very vocal about the things that I like. I think we’re further along than we were in the spring. But then again, with the games coming up, we still have a long way to go.”

While Ryan was tightlipped on whether some of those things he shared with Sarkisian involved the no-huddle offense or more audibles, he did admit he loved Sarkisian’s football IQ.

Sarkisian’s only previous NFL experience came in 2004 when he was the quarterback coach in Oak- land. The former BYU quarterback was later head coach at Washington (2009-2013) and Southern California (2014-2015).

“I think he’s really smart,” Ryan said. “That’s probably the thing that I’ve noticed on the field and in the classroom, is that he’s been around and coached in a lot of different places with a lot of different skill types and I think when coaches do that, they become very well-versed in a lot of different things.”

Sarkisian most recently served as Alabama’s offensive coordinator for the 2017 College Football Playoff Championship game in January.

Backup quarterback Matt Schaub immediately recognized how quickly the dialogue between the veteran quarterback and the new coach has developed.

“That’s where it starts in the offseason, just talking, watching film, discussing how we look at things, how he looks at things and form how we want to move forward and make things better,” Schaub said. “Both those guys have open minds, communicate and are receptive to the good, bad and ugly.”

On Friday, coach Dan Quinn joined Sarkisian in the quarterback meeting room.

“I love the back-andforth,” Quinn said. “Talking to Matt Ryan and Matt Schaub in that setting, that’s how quick they are. They’re on a coaching conversational level because of their knowledge, their experience. ‘I like this. We could also do this.’ So (Ryan’s) always challenging us with how else you can do it and I love that about him. Both (Ryan and Schaub), that part is as good as I could hope for.”

An important key for Sarkisian has been listening to what worked well last season for the quarterbacks, while at the same time trying to kick it up a notch.

Sarkisian has already simplified the terminology.

“(Sarkisian) made it a little more friendly, verbiage-wise, to shorten things so we can get to the line and play faster, dictate to the defense,” Schaub said. “He’s really dove headfirst into it and started fast with knowing what we’re doing.”