ATLANTA — The Falcons are moving on from the Matt Ryan era, a league source tells 11Alive.
The Falcons are finalizing a trade of the longtime franchise quarterback,11Alive’s Maria Martin confirmed, reportedly to the Indianapolis Colts.
Ryan was due to receive a $7.5 million bonus if he remained on the Falcons’ roster past 4 p.m. Monday, and there was wide speculation the team would move to trade the quarterback before that bonus kicked in.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the Falcons are receiving a third-round pick from Indy.
The team later announced it had agreed to sign quarterback Marcus Mariota to a two-year contract as Ryan’s evident replacement.
Monday’s deal marks an end to a remarkable career in Atlanta for “Matty Ice.” Ryan, according to ESPN’s Schefter, “just felt like the time had come to move on from Atlanta” and agreed to a trade to Indianapolis “because he felt like the Colts have a roster that’s built to win now.”
By contrast, the Falcons have not had a winning season since 2017 – with seven wins in three of the last four years. And this offseason Atlanta already lost their top wide receiver, Calvin Ridley, to a yearlong suspension and Russell Gage, second on the team in receptions last year, to Tampa Bay in free agency.
He played 14 seasons with the Falcons, starting immediately as a rookie after being taken third in the draft – and winning Offensive Rookie of the Year – in 2008.
Ryan made four Pro Bowls and was the 2016 NFL MVP. He led the Falcons to the brink of a Super Bowl championship in Super Bowl LI before the team collapsed in an instantly infamous loss.
Across his 14 seasons, he compiled a 120-102 record for Atlanta, completing more than 5,200 of his 8,003 pass attempts for 59,735 yards. He threw 367 touchdowns to just 170 interceptions.
In all, it is a statistical record that ranks him easily as the greatest quarterback in Falcons franchise history.