Back-up quarterback is irrelevant for the Atlanta Falcons

Kurt Benkert was a bright spot for the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night in the Hall of Fame game. He left the game in the fourth quarter with what looked like a foot injury at the time.

Saturday morning, the NFL Network called the Atlanta Falcons quarterback’s injury a “major toe injury” and not too long after the Falcons announced that they were bringing back Matt Simms. This is a blow for a lot of reasons, both for Benkert, the Falcons and the Falcons fans who were hoping that Benkert would be able to replace 38-year-old Matt Schaub as Matt Ryan’s back-up.

It was one game against players who aren’t going to make an NFL roster, but it was not about who Benkert was facing Thursday night, it was about what he was doing against them. It was clear that he had grown a lot over the last year and was a much better quarterback than he was this time last year.

Benkert looked like a legitimate backup NFL quarterback. He made the right reads and made some good throws that young quarterbacks struggle to make. The one that comes to mind was a drive in the second half where tight end Alex Gray ran a shallow crossing route in the front of the endzone and Benkert put the ball low and away from the coverage. Yes, it was incomplete, but that was the result of Gray not adjusting not the throw.

At this point, bringing Matt Simms in is nothing more than having a camp arm. Last time we all saw Simms, he was playing for the Atlanta Legends in the short-lived AAF where he was unable to lead the team to endzone as its starting quarterback.

No one is excited about Matt Schaub as the Falcons back-up quarterback. He faced the same level of competition Thursday night and had an 8 QBR. He was awful, no other way to put it. However, regardless of who the back-up quarterback is – Schaub, Benkert or Simms, they are not Matt Ryan and if the Falcons lose Ryan, the season is effectively over.

Might seem like a house of cards, but in reality Matt Ryan is an elite quarterback surrounded by really good talent. His leadership and direction on the field as a general, matter as much as his talent. A game manager can manage the game, but they lack the intangible that Ryan brings to the table every Sunday.

Teams and fans would like to think that they have the next Nick Foles, but no one does. Foles was a pro-bowl quarterback before he became a Super Bowl winning back-up. Like most other teams in the league, if our elite top four starting quarterback has a season ending injury, the season might as well end.

Let’s hope Matt Ryan continues to stay healthy and let’s hope the Falcons build better depth on the offensive line where it matters than they have at quarterback.