With so several positions in flux as we head toward 2013 Russell Athletic Atlanta Falcons Training Camp, which will feature position battles aplenty, one thing can be expected to remain steady: Matt Bryant's consistency.
Since Bryant's arrival to the Falcons in 2009, his 88.6 field goal percentage ranks second in the league. That gives him the best percentage of anyone with at least 40 attempts in that span. Last season, at 38 years old, he went 33-for-38 in field goal attempts. His longest kick as a Falcon came against the Raiders last year season when he nailed a 55-yarder. It seems that with age, Bryant continues to get better.
It's not only in Atlanta that Bryant has made an impact with his kicking range on the field. He attended high school at Bridge City in Texas and still holds the school record for longest field goal at 52 yards. At Baylor, Bryant is ranked seventh on the all-time scoring list with 105 points (21 field goals and 42 extra points). The 21 field goals are the fifth most all-time at Baylor and Bryant's 42 extra points made in 42 attempts is the highest percentage in school history.
When looking over Bryant's stats, his impact on the Falcons franchise is clear. It makes it even harder to believe that he went undrafted and spent time working in a pawn shop before finally getting his chance at the NFL. He has converted 200-of-238 field goals in 131 career games and has drilled all 133 extra point attempts — third-most in the NFL.
With the way Bryant kicked the 49-yard game winning field goal against the Seahawks to advance the Falcons to the NFC Championship, it proves that he doesn't show a sign of slowing down any time soon, and we could be in for more of his late-game heroics in 2013.
