Matt Ryan could not be more excited about Hayden Hurst

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan had a lot to say this week about a range of topics.

Matt Ryan joined a media teleconference, and he had a lot of eye-opening things to say regarding the Atlanta Falcons and the 2020 season.

From a football standpoint, the biggest takeaway from his interview was his thoughts on newly acquired tight-end Hayden Hurst; who is replacing Pro-Bowl tight-end Austin Hooper. Matt Ryan called Hurst “the fastest and most athletic tight-end” he has played with.

Let that sink in for a minute.

Matt Ryan spent five years throwing to Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez and several more years helping Austin Hooper develop into one of the best weapons at the tight-end position and Matt is telling everyone that former first-round pick Hayden Hurst is more athletic than either of them.

If that does not get everyone excited about adding Hurst to this offense, chances are nothing will get you excited about it. Sure, we could be naysayers and talk about Dirk Koetter and his inability as an offensive coordinator, but there is more than enough negativity going on around us, so let’s stay positive.

After the Falcons completed the trade for Hurst, some of us were actually happy about the trade. Coming out of South Carolina, Hurst is a guy that I thought would help Matt Ryan and this offense a lot more than Hooper could and I said so openly.

Matt Ryan will finally have a versatile tight-end

Having a versatile tight-end will only help the Falcons offense, especially in the red-zone. Prior to Hooper’s injury in 2019, he was among the league leaders in catches, yards, and touchdowns for tight-ends. He also helped open the field for Julio.

Prior to Week 10 when Hooper missed three straight games, Julio had four games in which he had more than 100 yards receiving. The three games that Hooper missed in 2019, saw Julio have just 225 combined receiving yards.

The biggest deal about adding Hayden Hurst to this offense with Matt Ryan is his ability to block. Matt was hit more than 100 times each during the 2018 and 2019 seasons. The Falcons have missed having a tight-end that can actually block in both the run and passing game. Having Hurst here will not only improve the Falcons passing game but Todd Gurley, Brian Hill, and Ito Smith will also benefit from his skillset.

We saw what Matt Ryan did with Austin Hooper, what he will be able to do with Hayden Hurst will be even better and more explosive.