The Falcoholic
Following an ugly performance on opening night in Philadelphia, the pressure on Matt Ryan was intensifying in 2018. A rollercoaster 2017 season that ended in a devastating loss to the Eagles put the Falcons in a position where they had to move with urgency after nearly making it back to the Super Bowl.
To fall short against the same team in a similar fashion to start the season raised more questions about the state of the offense, particularly for embattled offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian. They responded by scoring 31 or more points in three consecutive games.
During that scorching stretch, Ryan threw 10 touchdowns and one interception. That included completing at least 74% of his passes in all three games. After a much-needed win over Carolina, where Ryan completed 82% of his passes, an early-season showdown against New Orleans was next for the Falcons.
Both teams were Super Bowl contenders going into the season. Both games were surprisingly defensive slugfests in the previous season, with each team winning at home. Not having those classic high-scoring games between Ryan and Drew Brees felt odd, especially considering the offensive firepower both squads had. Both offenses came to play in this matchup, producing one of the wildest games ever in the historic rivalry.
There was some criticism about the Falcons’ decision to draft Calvin Ridley in the first round. All the critiques about selecting an “older” receiver ended by the third week of the season. A stat line of seven receptions for 146 yards and three touchdowns against the Saints will have your jersey next to Ryan and Julio Jones in stores across Atlanta.
As Ridley was creating separation at will and accelerating past the Saints’ secondary, Ryan was consistently hitting him in stride. Ridley’s clever stutter-and-go on P.J. Williams was the first touchdown between the 2016 NFL MVP and the rookie wide receiver in this incredible game.
One of the biggest developments in Ryan’s growth into becoming a top-tier quarterback was his conviction in targeting a clear mismatch. It’s something Kyle Shanahan brought out of him often at his best. Ryan identified that Williams couldn’t keep pace with Ridley. He went in full attack mode.
After beating him on a comeback for an 11-yard gain, Ridley decided to go vertical against Williams two drives later. The formation alignment worked perfectly as Sarkisian used trips on the left with Jones, Mohamed Sanu, and Austin Hooper.
Aligning Ridley to be isolated against Williams gave Ryan a clear opportunity to get aggressive downfield. That became a 75-yard touchdown as Ryan led Ridley beautifully after he won his matchup again. Sean Payton had no choice but to bench the overmatched cornerback after the second touchdown.
It didn’t take long for the third touchdown between them. A six-play, 75-yard drive to start the second half ended with Ryan patiently going through his progressions to find Ridley in the back of the end zone for a nine-yard score.
They got into the red zone after...
