The Atlanta Falcons spent the past week alienating Matt Ryan — the best quarterback in their franchise’s history — during a failed pursuit of Deshaun Watson. And in doing so, they destroyed any leverage they had in trade negotiations to move Ryan ahead of a 4 p.m. Monday roster bonus deadline.
The classic Falcons miscalculation fully backfired on Monday when the team agreed to trade Ryan — a former MVP and four-time Pro Bowler — to the Indianapolis Colts for a single 2022 third-round pick. Just like that, the Falcons went from what would’ve been win-now mode with Watson to a full-on rebuild.
The trade brings an end to Ryan’s time in Atlanta where he had spent his entire career since being drafted out of Boston College in 2008. But really, it was difficult to overlook the little return the Falcons got for Ryan.
Done deal: The #Falcons are trading former NFL MVP Matt Ryan to the #Colts for a 2022 third-round pick, sources tell me, @RapSheet and @MikeGarafolo.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 21, 2022
They could not have played the Watson pursuit worse, and now the Falcons are looking at one of the worst rosters in the NFL heading into the 2022 season. And NFL fans understandably crushed the Falcons for the desperation move.