Former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan, who won the NFL Most Valuable Player award in 2016, announced his retirement from professional football.
Ryan signed a one-day deal with the Falcons in order to retire as a member of the franchise. He made the news official through a video statement in which he said that his “childhood dream has officially come to an end.”
“I’m excited to see what’s next, this next chapter of life, and see where that takes us,” Ryan added. “But today, it’s exciting for me because you never have control in this profession of where you’re going to start, and I could not have been luckier that it was a start here in Atlanta, and it went for 14 years, and now I can bookend it and retire as a Falcon today.”
Ryan was drafted third overall by the Falcons in 2008 and went on to play 14 years with the franchise. During that time, he made four Pro Bowls, won the MVP, and led Atlanta to a Super Bowl LI appearance. Ryan also holds almost every Falcons franchise record in the passing category.
Ahead of the 2022 season, the Falcons traded Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts as they were looking toward a rebuild. Ryan struggled with his new team, going 4-7-1 as a starter, and was eventually released by the Colts at the end of the campaign. He didn’t sign with a team in 2023, opting to join CBS Sports as an analyst.
Ryan is retiring after having posted a 65.6% pass completion percentage with 62,792 passing yards, 381 touchdowns, 183 interceptions, and a 124−109−1 record as a starter.
