Matt Ryan not ruling out NFL comeback if team needs a veteran QB

You can call it the Brett Favre, Tom Brady or Jay Cutler approach. Whatever it is, veteran NFL quarterback Matt Ryan is following their lead. That is, he’s not ruling out a return to the league, despite a very real possibility of missing the 2023 season.

Ryan, who spent last season with the Indianapolis Colts after a 14-year run with the Atlanta Falcons, currently plans to join CBS for its NFL coverage this season. But the 38-year-old hasn’t ruled out a potential return to the league.

“I’m staying in shape,” Ryan told The Athletic. “I think it is kind of, ‘You know my number. You know where I’m at.’ If anything were to come up, you know, we’ll see. [CBS] is where my focus is at right now. But we’ll see how the season shakes out.”

Ryan had been considered one of the most prolific passers in the league for a majority of his career. But the 2022 campaign with the Colts didn’t reflect that success. Ryan threw 14 touchdown passes with 13 interceptions in 12 starts as Indianapolis ended the year with a 4-12-1 record.

Even though he struggled last season, Ryan still brings experience and leadership qualities to the field. We’ll see if any team values his skill set enough to give him a call.

Matt Ryan doesn’t pull any punches on 2022 season

Nobody enjoys struggling through an NFL season. Ryan’s numbers were pretty poor with the Colts last year, and he didn’t hide from that. But he also summed up the past 18 months of his career with an interesting word.

“I mean, it was a s–tshow, you know, it was a s–tshow of 18 months basically is the best way to describe it,” Ryan said, per Josh Kendall of The Athletic. “But I think everybody in our family handled it well and came out of it stronger and in a really good spot.”

Ryan has the credentials of a potential Hall of Famer. He was a four-time Pro Bowl selection and was named the league’s MVP in 2016. Ryan also led the Falcons to an appearance in Super Bowl LI, coming up just short of winning a ring.

Over the course of his career, Ryan has thrown for 62,792 yards with 381 touchdowns. He’s completed 65.6% of his passes and owns a passer rating of 93.6.

We’ll see if any team picks up the phone and hits up Ryan for one more year.