Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan facing pressure in prime time

The Atlanta Falcons are headed into a Thursday night match-up with the New England Patriots. Patriots quarterback Mac Jones has been hot winning four in a row and has been greatly helped by an aggressive Patriots defense.

The Patriots are one of the better defenses the Falcons will face this season with the Cowboys, Panthers, and Bucs also earning consideration. Ryan has played three of these matchups already and has gone 0-3 in those games.

Last week was the latest example in what was Atlanta’s worst loss of the season. Ryan managed only 117-yards and turned the ball over twice without scoring a single touchdown against the Cowboys. Even in garbage time, Ryan couldn’t manage to find a rhythm and get the ball down the field.

After the Atlanta Falcons first drive against Dallas Matt Ryan looked lost and made terrible decisions consistently

Ryan was eventually replaced by Josh Rosen due to how far the game had gotten out of hand. There is also the fact that simply put Rosen could not play any worse than Ryan did in this game. Now against New England in his lone Thursday night game of the season Ryan is under pressure to bounce back in front of a national audience.

In a game that is sure to have its share of Super Bowl references, Ryan cannot afford another bad game this season. He already has had two truly terrible games against the Panthers and Cowboys. This isn’t counting the week one blowout loss to the Eagles or the Tampa game in which Ryan threw three picks trying to bring his team back.

As great as he has been at times this season Ryan has had his struggles and coming off of a terrible game cannot afford another one. A prime-time loss all but cements the Falcons as out of the wildcard race and leaves them wondering about their future. Should they consider bringing in a quarterback to learn under Ryan?

To say this question would be answered by a single game would bring a prisoner of the moment approach to a game that counts as one win or loss.  However, it is fair to point out Atlanta’s veteran leader has consistently had bad games this season and another one in this spot may bring momentum to Atlanta considering their future at the position.

Regardless Atlanta cannot afford another bad performance from Ryan. They need the former MVP to play to the level he is capable of and performs as he did against the Saints and the Dolphins. If he doesn’t Atlanta is going to lose this game and fans may begin to wonder about options beyond Matt Ryan.