Frank Reich says Matt Ryan, Colts ‘needed each other’

Practically every week after buying and selling for quarterback Matt Ryan, Indianapolis Colts head coach Frank Reich says the 2016 NFL MVP and his new crew “wanted one another.”

“I feel everybody noticed from the skin that it is a good match,” Reich mentioned on the annual league assembly Sunday in Florida, in line with NFL.com. “Like, folks can universally agree you bought a man who’s nonetheless taking part in at a excessive degree with a crew and roster that’s constructed to make some noise. We wanted one another.”

Ryan, a 14-year NFL veteran who had performed his whole profession with the Atlanta Falcons, hopes to turn into the third straight veteran quarterback to win a Tremendous Bowl in his first season with a brand new crew. For Indianapolis, Reich hopes to shut a revolving door of quarterbacks he is seen throughout his tenure as head coach for the reason that retirement of Andrew Luck. 

The Colts made the transfer after buying and selling Carson Wentz to the Washington Commanders earlier this month, however Ryan initially wasn’t on Indianapolis’ radar after that commerce, Reich mentioned. 

Carson Wentz (2) of the Indianapolis Colts talks with head coach Frank Reich of the Indianapolis Colts throughout a sport in opposition to the New York Jets at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis Nov. 4, 2021.
(Michael Hickey/Getty Pictures)

The crew appeared into buying Ryan across the similar time former Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson was rumored to land in Atlanta, Reich mentioned. The Falcons stored talks ongoing with Ryan, Reich mentioned, and reportedly made the deal after shedding out on the Watson sweepstakes. Watson is now with the Cleveland Browns. 

To find out if Ryan was match, Reich mentioned he first appeared into whether or not the accuracy and arm energy of the previous Falcons quarterback was nonetheless there. 

“So, dig into each throw from the final couple years. Take a look at the ball velocity, have a look at the size, have a look at the accuracy, have a look at the motion abilities and I see no diminishing bodily abilities,” Reich mentioned. 

Ryan had been the beginning quarterback for Atlanta ever since he was chosen No. 3 total by the Falcons within the 2008 NFL Draft. He’s solely missed a handful of video games throughout his stable profession and helped Atlanta to its second-ever Tremendous Bowl look in the course of the 2016 season. Nevertheless, the crew misplaced to the New England Patriots in brutal vogue – a second-half comeback after Atlanta had been up 28-3.

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After the Falcons traded Julio Jones and misplaced Calvin Ridley in the course of final season, Ryan completed with 3,968 passing yards, which was the bottom complete for him since 2010. He threw for no less than 4,000 passing yards in every of the earlier 10 seasons.

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Matt Ryan speaks throughout a press convention on the crew’s apply facility in Indianapolis March 22, 2022.
(AP Picture/Michael Conroy)

The Colts have a playoff-caliber roster with seven gamers chosen to the Professional Bowl final season, together with first-team AP All-Professional working again Jonathan Taylor, who grew to become the youngest participant in NFL historical past to complete 2,000 scrimmage yards and 20 touchdowns in a season. 

Reich mentioned the Colts’ offense goes to be just like final yr’s with a number of tweaks he hopes will play to Ryan’s strengths.

“We’ll pull out ideas that he is carried out so much in Atlanta and he is been profitable with. We’ll take heed to how he is thought of these issues, how they complement what we do, after which we’ll discover methods to combine a few of these issues,” Reich mentioned. “I can already inform in a number of quick discussions with him, that we’ll create some issues collectively. A few of it’s bringing collectively his previous (playbook) and what we have been doing, but there’s nonetheless issues that can be created collectively. I am trying ahead to these.”

The Colts have been knocked out of the playoffs final season following a surprising defeat to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 18. Reich says ending a season that manner “eats at you perpetually,” although he expressed optimism that the defeat and commerce of Ryan might present a spark for his crew. 

“If you end the season the way in which we did, it eats at you perpetually. It can by no means go away,” mentioned Reich. “I’ve simply seen this time and time once more, not solely in my very own profession, however you simply go searching in sports activities historical past, this occurs. It occurs the place you undergo an epic collapse or failure, after which that really seems to be the very factor that sparks you to go to that subsequent degree. That is what we’re believing and pondering is gonna occur in Indianapolis.”

The Colts acquired Ryan from the Falcons in trade for a 2022 third-round draft decide.

Fox Information’ Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report