Matt Ryan, an NFL Most Valuable Player during a storied career with the Atlanta Falcons, is in conversations with his former team about returning for a role in the front office, according to multiple reports on Sunday.
Fox NFL reporter Jay Glazer reported that Ryan is “seriously considering the move” for a “significant” front-office post after conversations with team owner Arthur Blank.
Ryan, 40, is an NFL analyst for CBS after ending his playing career in 2022, his lone season with the Indianapolis Colts. He spent his first 14 years with the Falcons and took them to the Super Bowl in the 2016 season.
The Falcons, currently 6-9, are enduring their eighth consecutive losing season, with general manager Terry Fontenot in his fifth campaign and head coach Raheem Morris his second. Atlanta has the longest run without a postseason appearance in the NFC at eight years.
Ryan officially retired as a Falcons player in April 2024 and was inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor in October 2024. Atlanta selected him third overall in the 2008 NFL Draft.
He led the NFL in completions in 2019 and 2020 and won the 2016 MVP, when he led the team to an 11-5 mark behind 4,944 passing yards, 38 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Ryan was selected to four Pro Bowls.
That 2016 team played in Super Bowl LI on Feb. 5, 2017, and had a 28-3 lead over the New England Patriots in the third quarter before Tom Brady led his team on an epic comeback, winning 34-28 in overtime.
Ryan started 234 career games — 222 of them in Atlanta — and was remarkably durable in posting a 124-109-1 record. He missed just three games with the Falcons.
For his career, Ryan connected on 65.6% of his passes, threw for 62,792 yards (ninth in NFL history), tossed 381 touchdown passes (10th in NFL history) and recorded 183 interceptions.
