Matt Ryan is lucky Tom Brady landed in the NFC South

Perhaps the biggest signing of free agency came at the hands of one of the Atlanta Falcons rivals. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed the most successful quarterback of all time, Tom Brady. And while the Bucs receivers and fans are elated, no one should be happier than Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan.

Matt Ryan has led the Falcons into some duels and has come away with some impressive victories on his resume: Eli Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Philip Rivers, Drew Brees, Cam Newton, Russell Wilson, you get it.

But there are two that he has yet to defeat, Ben Roethlisberger and Tom Brady. He’s won a game against every team in the NFL except the Steelers and Patriots. After the Super Bowl versus the Patriots, and their matchup the following year, there was a chance that Brady wouldn’t be around for another game between the two. Brady wants to play until he’s 45 but Father Time is undefeated.

Well, Matty Ice, you’ve just been gifted at least two more chances at him. Forget the Patriots here, Ryan should be around when the AFC East rolls around again, we’ve got two more years before it does. So he’ll get at least one more shot at New England and this time, in Atlanta. But now that Brady is in the division, he’ll get two more shots at dethroning the GOAT.

In fact, after the Super Bowl, Ryan dropped an emotional Instagram post saying his heart hurt for the city of Atlanta. And it should’ve. Because Brady stole what should’ve been his. He took Ryan’s best shot, the Falcons best shot at a Lombardi Trophy. And we get it, athletes are supposed to have a short memory and move on and all that, but this fuel should be burning in Matt until he puts it out. Now, he’s looked at by some as the third-best quarterback in the division, that alone should fire him up going into the season.

And now he gets his chance. It’s not about Tampa Bay or New England at this point. It’s about going after the guy who handed you the biggest loss in your career. The Falcons typically split the season series with the Bucs. Jameis Winston proved to be more to handle that his numbers, 30 interceptions, show. Rest assured, any lead the Falcons may hold over Tampa Bay in a game with Brady, the Super Bowl collapse will get brought up.

But Matt Ryan has a TB12 monkey to get off his back. Michael Jordan’s was the Detroit Bad Boys, Lebron’s was the Celtics, Peyton Manning’s was winning a Super Bowl. Now, Matt, it’s your turn. You get two shots this year, and if your heart is true with Atlanta, you’d go get them both.