New Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian had the chance to have lunch with Matt Ryan this week, his first opportunity to really connect with the MVP.
What did Sarkisian take out of the conversation? He compared it to another chat he had years ago with a top-caliber quarterback.
“I went to coach quarterbacks for the Oakland Raiders in 2004 — I was 29 years old — and I inherited Rich Gannon, who was two years removed from the Super Bowl and his MVP season,” Sarkisian explained, “and Rich was really focused. He was very driven. He knew what he wanted. He knew what he liked.
“I heard a lot of similar things coming from Matt at lunch: a guy who has had some success throughout his career, has been part of really good offenses, and then really saw it all come together this year. And then ultimately really saw it come together as a team getting to the Super Bowl. So I think the guy I saw and what I felt from him was he’s still very hungry and he wants to keep going and he wants to see this thing through, and he’s willing to put in the time and effort, whatever he needs to do to make that happen.”
Sarkisian said he didn’t get a chance to dig too deep with Ryan just yet. They’ll have plenty of time to connect during the offseason.
“As we get into specifics of the offense moving forward — this was somewhat of an introductory meeting of just things we believed in or liked and styles, and coaching styles — but more importantly, my takeaway was that this guy has a real fire in his eyes right now that he can’t wait to get back to work,” Sarkisian said.
Sarkisian has been a quarterbacks coach throughout his career but envisions the Falcons hiring someone else in that role to assist. Regardless, he plans to have a hands-on approach with Ryan as he becomes accustomed to the offense former offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan implemented, an offense Ryan mastered this past season.
“There’s no question my relationship with the starting quarterback — in this case, Matt — is one that is critical to our success,” Sarkisian said. “And it will be a point of emphasis here all offseason and then into the season.”
Ryan didn’t necessarily connect with Shanahan in Year 1 of the offense, which led to a rocky season. But the two improve their relationship and communication going into this past season, which led to Ryan having the best season of his career. Now he’ll look to maintain the momentum while working with Sarkisian.
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