FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Whether Matt Ryan is a player, an analyst or — now — the Atlanta Falcons' president of football, the same term has been used to describe him time and time again.
No matter how you see him, Ryan is a pro.
As a player, he carried the leadership responsibilities of a franchise quarterback with both grace and fire. As an analyst, he was knowledgeable, well-spoken and passionate — three qualities any speaker needs to captivate an audience. As an executive, all of that remains.
But what was abundantly clear at Ryan's introductory press conference Tuesday morning was this: The fire he carried as Atlanta's quarterback, the passion with which he spoke as a member of the media, the competitive drive he has always possessed — it still lives on.
It's no longer bottled up in the heat of a moment on the field, when his passion might bubble over as he loudly tells a receiver exactly where he wants him. Now, it simmers just beneath the surface — behind a megawatt smile, a tailored suit and a Falcons pin.
Everything that made Ryan one of the best players in franchise history, that made him a staple on television screens over the past three years, forms the foundation of what he brings back into the Falcons' building as president of football.
Matt Ryan still — very much — wants to win.
"My mission since I was drafted has never changed," Ryan said directly to Falcons fans. "It is to help this organization do everything it can to be champions and to win championships. There is a sense of unfinished business. We were close at times. We had some success here and there, but I truly believe we are going to get there. I have full faith in the people in this building, and the folks who are going to be coming into this building are going to help us get there."
The feeling of unfinished business can linger, especially for someone who cares so deeply about their craft. Ryan didn't fully realize how much it weighed on him until he hung up his cleats.
He missed winning. He missed the heartbeat of a locker room, the pulse of a stadium. He missed competing.
"It is hard to replicate the wins and losses," Ryan said, "the work that goes into that and the result, a result every Sunday."
So, when the opportunity arose to return in a different way, to be part of that machine again, he jumped.
As he prepared to interview for the role of president of football, Ryan reached out to individuals across the league who had made the transition from player to executive. Their experiences echoed one another.
"There's this sense that you miss being around the team, the locker room," Ryan said. "But you also miss the competitiveness — the result, the nature of being prepared. Doing everything you can and laying it all on the line. There's a level of missing that."
You can never recapture the feeling of playing the game. That much is true. But, according to those Ryan trusted for guidance, being back in the building comes as close as possible to donning a helmet once more.
"It's different than playing, that's what they say," Ryan said, "but it does get your juices flowing."
That's exactly what Ryan wanted, and what he craved.
To win? To restore this organization to winning ways? That is his mission.
The packaging may be different now, but the intent remains. The competitiveness lives. It simmers.
"My responsibilities and my impact are different from what they were as a player," Ryan said, "but there's nothing better than being part of it — being in the locker room after a win. That feeling of knowing it took everybody in this building."
It's the challenge owner Arthur Blank laid squarely at Ryan's feet.
"This role and this responsibility are primarily involved with one thing: winning football games," Blank said. "We have to win football games. That's the role. That's Matt's major job. … It's about winning games. And that is our focus. That's what we're talking about today, and that's what it has to be."
Ryan is ready to meet that challenge head-on.
"My role is different. My responsibilities are different," Ryan said. "But we are here to win."
