Getty Matt Ryan #2 of the Atlanta Falcons.
Atlanta Falcons’ MVP quarterback, Matt Ryan, had the worst game of his career on Sunday, November 14th.
The 14-year NFL veteran finished with a career-low 21.4 passer rating in the Falcons’ embarrassing 43-3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Ryan completed just 9 of 21 passes for 117 yards and had two interceptions.
It’s been a while since he’s seen a rating that low, in fact, it hasn’t happened since his 2008 rookie year when he finished with 29.6 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“I remember that one, too,” Ryan said of that horrific memory in the post-game presser. “It was ugly.”
Nonetheless, Ryan plans to turn things around and move forward.
“Hopefully, it will be another 13 years before I have another rating like that,” Ryan said. “That’s kind of how I view it. It’s one of the days, it wasn’t for us. We didn’t play well. I didn’t play well. You’ve got to get back to work. Trust me, I really believe that we’re going to get back there next week and play really well.”
Grant finished the day with three solo tackles to go with the forced fumble in the Falcons’ 43-3 loss to the Cowboys.
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Matt Ryan Credits Dan Quinn’s Defense
Naturally, the Falcons’ biggest blowout came against Ryan’s former head coach––Dan Quinn––the person who knows his weaknesses best.
“I saw Dan briefly before the game,” said Ryan. “Just gave him a hug and said, ‘Good luck today. I’ll catch up with you at some point after.’ Credit to them. Credit to him and credit to their defense.
“I thought he did a great job putting those guys in position to be successful, and their guys made plays. I thought Dan coached a really good game. … I thought they played very well. I thought we played poorly. When you do that and you are going against a good football team, it can get ugly quickly.”
With the loss, the Falcons fell to 4-5 on the season, which puts them fourth in the NFC South.
Quinn Earned the Game Ball
It was a good day for the Cowboys on both sides of the ball, but especially Quinn’s defense who kept the Falcons to just 3 points.
The team gathered for a post-game locker room celebration and honored Quinn with the game ball.
Cowboys DC Dan Quinn presented a game ball in locker room after 43-3 win over Falcons. Quinn coached five-plus seasons in Atlanta before his dismissal last October. Video from @dallascowboys.
Quinn coached the Falcons for five-plus seasons posting a 43-42 record. In that time, he took the Falcons to Super Bowl LI where Atlanta gave up a 28-3 lead and ultimately lost to the New England Patriots in overtime.
He fired last October after an 0-5 start, so you could say the blowout victory was a sigh of relief for him.
“It’s good to have that game done and over with,” Quinn said after the game via ESPN. “More than anything, when you, like any team that you [have been with], a lot of friends you have, you go and battle. It’s the fun part of the NFL. There’s always good rivalries between coaches and players. There’s a lot of guys on that roster and in the building I certainly care about a lot.”
The Falcons have a quick turnaround in Week 11 as they prepare to face the Patriots at home for a Thursday night showdown.
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