 Hey Matt, just want to check in with you to see how the off season is going and how you are, you know, adjusting and working with Arthur Smith and as a, you know, first play time as a head coach with a play caller and Dave we're going so far. How's that going for you. It's been going well. You know, I think obviously transition requires a lot of effort and a lot of work to learn the new system to make sure that you know you're as comfortable as you possibly can be with the terminology and and you know what they expect from you there's always differences nuance between, you know, different schemes and what, you know, certain coaches, you know how they like certain things and so I've been working really hard to try and get on the same page with them and been excited that we're able to start and get out on the field this week and you know just start to get guys lined up moving around and making steps in the right direction but Damon and Arthur have been great and I'm excited about, you know, the future and hopefully winning a bunch of games. Yep. And, you know, I know others will ask about Kyle Pitts and Julio, but opting out you all voted some guys voted not to come and some are coming how y'all doing attendance wise with the guys that are deciding to work out and come during the pandemic and the, you know, phase two of the program. Yeah, I think, you know, we collectively bargain for it to be optional and voluntary a couple of years ago, and I fully support guys making whatever decision they want to make, whatever they think is best for them to get themselves ready to go and so I think, you know, attendance wise, you know, I'm fired up to be here. For me, I feel like it gives me the best, you know, opportunity to be successful but I think for all guys they've got to make whatever decisions are best for them. And, you know, that's kind of been the case throughout my entire career. To be honest with you, there's been guys that have been here there's been guys that haven't, but you trust the guys that are doing it on their own or doing a great job of getting themselves ready to go and in shape and I have a lot of, you know, belief and trust that those guys will be ready to rock and it's time to go in in July. Tori. Hey Matt happy belated birthday did you do anything fun yesterday. Thank you Tori. We took the kids out for an early dinner they got some chicken fingers and chilled out so that that was kind of it but a nice day spent with my family and you know, they're more fun when you're in your 20s you know fun having those birthdays when you're in your 20s It was a good day. Thank you. You're welcome. Getting into my actual questions now. How much did you actually know about Arthur Smith prior to getting to know him now that he's come in and you've been able to work with him now. Did you know much about him before he came in. Just just from a distance having watched what what they did in Tennessee you know I have a bunch of coaches that I have played for have worked with him and all all of them speak really highly, you know of him and who he is as a person who is you know as a football coach. You know so he comes you know highly highly recommended from from a lot of people that I trust. But you know, didn't know him personally, but but certainly you know knew him professionally and watch what they did and they had a lot of success in Tennessee did a great job there. Wanted to go back a couple weeks to the lead up of the draft at what point did you did you know that they that Cal pits was the guy did what did you have a heads up at all, or where are you kind of waiting around like the rest of us. Yeah, no that's that's those are not my calls right and not under my job description so you know I leave that to the folks upstairs and I was just excited you know found out at pick for you know that he was coming here and you know he's he's worked really hard the first couple of weeks. I really enjoyed getting to know him but I was excited that night as well. Michael rusting. Hi Matt, how are you. I'm curious about kind of with the draft. The fact that Atlanta didn't take a quarterback at all. Did that give you any sort of level of confidence or any sort of level of maybe comfort with where your future might be in Atlanta. It didn't really change my, you know, my confidence level or my approach in any way. I think that, you know, I always prepare, you know, every year as hard as I possibly can to give myself, you know, the best chance to be successful but you know I've always felt that people inside the building have a great amount of belief in me and I have a great amount of belief in myself but you know you never know how these things are going to shake out in the draft you never know what players are there what players were high on their board those kind of things you can't worry about it you know to me it's it's one of those things you just have to you know stay focused and keep your mindset on the things that are actually going to help you you know play well in the fall and that's what I try and do. Any conversations with with Arthur or Terry kind of about your status before the draft at all were any of those things discussed were you given any sort of idea. No I mean they, they, you know their job, you know as as GM as as head coach is to try and find the people that they feel are going to best help us win games and that's exactly what they said. And so, you know I had a lot of belief that I feel like I am that person that's going to help us win a lot of games. But no, no, not much more than that. Charles, just to hey thanks for doing this by the way. Just follow up on that, even even while you you believe that the leadership has confidence in you you understand I'm sure you heard that there was a lot of public debate as to what maybe those outside the team felt about the future at quarterback and whether it was time to to make plans for a different long term future. You've always been very pragmatic about things like that and accepting that certain things come with with with with age. But did that disrupt you at all did that upset you at all to hear all that debate and going on leading up to the draft. You know, not not really I think that you know in one respect you understand that if you play well for long enough these are the conversations that are going to come up. You know I understand I'm not going to play forever but I also you know have the mindset that I'm still playing really well and and have you know a lot of good football in front of me. But the most important thing to me is it comes from the belief in the building the people who are actually making decisions, the people who you know are with you day to day. And so that's kind of where I try and keep it it's harder now than ever to avoid the noise certainly easier earlier in my career just there was less of it there were less ways to get it but I found that you know if you're going to search for it. You know to try and get positive reviews on you. It's going to affect you in a certain way and the same thing if you're going to search for it in negative ways and I try and just, you know, stay down the middle keep keep my mindset on, you know, day to day daily improvement trying to be the best that I can be, and not really worrying about what other people say. With no disrespect to the tight ends who have followed Tony Gonzalez. Are there times that you still look back at the special gifts that he brought to the offense and now you see the comparisons that everybody's putting on call pets is it exciting to you to think that this might be somebody who can be compared to that kind of player. Yeah, I mean Tony, obviously first out Hall of Famer and you know arguably the best ever do it in his position. Certainly, you know it was the first guy to really change the position into what it is now. And so that's a lot to live up to and I wouldn't want to put that kind of pressure on anybody I think for Kyle, you know the biggest thing is is to just worry about getting better and you know learning the offense trying to get a little better every day. He's got great potential great, you know, upside but you know he's got to focus on daily improvement and trying to learn the offense as best he can. And, you know, if you kind of chip away at it, you know, slowly but surely, you know, the end result will get you to where you want to be but there's no shortcut to it. And so that's one of the biggest things I learned from being around Tony is that there's really no shortcut to be in the best at it. You know, you have to work at it and I think if he can do that, that'll set him off in the right direction. Justin Talbot. Hey Matt, we're only a little bit into the offseason program so there's a lot to figure out between now and when you guys get on the field but what is an offense with Julio Jones, Kyle Fitz, Calvin Ridley, all the other playmakers you guys have. What does that look like in your mind? Man, we're really at the beginning of this. So, you know, we're working on making sure we can get lined up in our formations, making sure that we understand, you know, what routes we have on certain concepts. I'm excited about the guys we have in the building for sure and, you know, feel like there's guys that are highly competitive that one-on-one football game. So I'm excited about that standpoint but we have a long way to go. And kind of going back to what Charles was asking about and then, you know, business decisions that come with the territory. There's also been speculation about Julio's future with the Falcons, how a move of him could affect the salary cap situation. Have you talked to him at all? How's he handling all of that and any insight on that situation? Yeah, I mean, listen, I love who. I mean, I've been so lucky to play with him, you know, for the past decade and he's an unbelievable player. I don't get involved in this side of it, you know, from a teammate, from a player standpoint. He's my teammate, you know, he's my guy and you let the other side of it shake out how it is. But I know this, he's always ready to go. He's an incredible competitor and one of the best to ever do it at his position. So he'll have himself ready to go. There's no question about that. Kelsey Conway. Hey Matt, ever since Arthur Smith's introductory press conference, he really stressed that he's about bringing accountability to the Falcons and he said he's going to make the best players accountable. I know you've only been on the field with him a little bit, but through the meetings, have you been able to get a sense that that's kind of the message he's going to bring throughout the building? Oh yeah, for sure. You know, you get on the meetings, on the Zoom calls, and he's asking everybody questions, firing off questions, making sure that guys are on top of what's being installed. And if they're not, making sure that they know that it's our job as professionals to find a way to learn this information and make sure we know it. And I think guys have responded well to that, but I certainly think he's made that felt from the beginning. Andrew, you talked about a little bit of the differences and challenges about learning a new scheme, but just how different is this scheme and what are some of the biggest things that you're going to have to adjust to? I know you said it's the language, but I'm sure there's a lot more. Yeah, I think, you know, from a language standpoint, I think, you know, I've played a number of different systems now, so it's like, you know, a combination of a couple of them. And so I go back, the formations are really similar to West Coast formations, which I played in for a number of years. Protections, you know, very similar. The concepts are similar as well. It's different names, so it's just kind of making sure that you have the right word association and, you know, you're speaking the right language. I think the biggest, you know, difference comes from getting a flavor for, you know, how the coaching staff is going to game plan, you know, what the week is going to look like, how they're going to call plays, situationally what we want to do. Try to get on the same page as fast as you can there, I think is probably the most important part. Zach Klein? Matt, it seems like the other 65 offensive coordinators you've had with the Falcons always talk about balance. But last year you threw nearly 200 more times than you did your rookie year in your 13th year. Is that just an evolution of the game? Can there really be a balance between passing and running in 2021 NFL football? You know, I think there can. I think in one of the organizations that was extremely balanced was Tennessee, and we've got a head coach that is coming in from that system. And so obviously they've had a different skill set of players there, different guys, but you know, I don't know what it looked like. My job is to try and operate whatever play is called. If it's 200 more passes than it is runs, we've got to find a way to make it work. You know, but I think, you know, most of the time teams are at the best when, you know, they make defenses to defend everything. Run pass, play action pass on the move, you know, just a ton of different things to tap to handle. But we'll see how we shake out, you know, every year is different. You don't know how injuries are going to go. You don't know how the season is going to go. And, you know, you have to, you know, try and find a way to get it done. And what is a 36 year old Matt Ryan is 14th year appreciate more about the game than he did maybe as a rookie? I think, you know, you realize how hard it is, you know, at this age and so you appreciate the success, probably more now, you know, I've never, I've never really been motivated. You know, you want to win but I really hate it losing more than I love winning, you know, it would eat at you more. And I think that only intensifies, you know, the older you get, you know, because you realize, you know, your opportunities are limited. And I probably appreciate the opportunity more now, knowing that, you know, I'm not in the first quarter or first half of my career. And, you know, and so it makes every chance you get, you know, all the more fun. Steve Wysh. Hey Matt. Hey, I just want to talk to you like I got a bigger picture, you know, you see a lot more of these, you know, quarterbacks, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, the world kind of be becoming more empowered, but you're not really out there, you know, speaking about your contract situation or how much longer you want to be with your team. When you look around and see what's, you know, going on with some of those guys, how comfortable is it to kind of be in the situation at your end, like you said, having people in the building believe in you. Yeah, I think everybody's, everybody's situation is different. I think they're, you know, I think you're correct. I think there's been a shift, for sure. You know, during during my time in the NFL, you know, where guys have become more vocal about certain situations. And, you know, I think that's a good thing from a player standpoint is, is, is you want some of that you want your voice to be heard. I feel like, you know, within our organization, you know, within the building that I've been in, I've been in a really fortunate spot where my voice has been heard. And I've always felt that way and always felt appreciated, but, you know, so I can't speak for other people's situations. I just feel fortunate that mine has been you know, as solid as it has been for, for the better part of 14 years. And now you just talked about also because, you know, you say there are limited opportunities because of your age coming up. How do you think this organization, you know, again, with this new leadership change has positioned you or the rest of your team to get you or is positioned in a team to kind of get you to the promised land, so to speak, on that limited window that you just mentioned? Well, it's not that limited, you know, I know I feel pretty good. I got a guy in division who's who, you know, he's a little longer in the tooth than I am. So, you know, I still feel pretty good. I just understand it's not the first half, you know, we're probably into the second half a little bit more. To answer your question, I feel like we're in a good place and, you know, we've got to improve, we've got to get better. There's no question about that, but I feel like we've got really good people in leadership positions with, you know, with a mindset and, you know, a clear vision for what they want to do. And, you know, it's our responsibility as players to, you know, you find a way to be a part of that, and that's what I'm going to, you know, try and continue to do as I move forward. But I feel, you know, I feel like I'm in a good place. Mark Bradley? Matt, if Terry Fontenot and Arthur Smith had come to you back in the early part of spring and said, we really have a rare opportunity to take a quarterback at number four. This isn't a reflection on you, but we think that planning our future, franchise future, this would be the way to go. What would have been your reaction to that? I don't know. You know, it didn't happen, so I can't really answer it, you know, honestly, but, you know, I understand that, you know, that's part of this business, you know, it's not easy. It gets magnified at the quarterback position because everything does, but, you know, this happens to guys every year, every week in our league. People are brought in to try and replace you that are cheaper, that are younger, you know, and it's your, you know, responsibility as a player to try and not make that happen. And so I don't know what I would have done, but, you know, maybe that'll happen at some point in the future, but it hasn't happened yet. I know that obviously you've enjoyed the total backing of this organization since the moment you were drafted. Did you have a little talk with yourself with the new coach and the new GM and say, you know, maybe they won't like me as much as the other guys did. Did you prepare yourself for that in any way? Yeah, I think you always do. I think you never know when there's transition, you know, what's going to happen. You have to go prove it with the way you work, prove it on the field, earn their respect. And I'm still, you know, for sure in the process of doing that, I'm in a fortunate position where they've got a body of work to be able to look at, but, you know, I still have to do that every day. And, you know, so you're constantly having that talk with yourself about, you know, whether it's year one, you're 14, you know, whatever year it is, you're constantly trying to prove that you're the right person for this spot. You know, I was told at a young age from some veteran players that in that locker room, you don't own the locker, you just, you rent it. And so, you know, I try and pay my rent on time all the time and do the best I can do to stay in that spot. Alex Glaze. Hey, Matt. So obviously just kind of in a way to piggyback off what Steve was asking you really about other quarterbacks around the league. You know, a lot of quarterbacks have issues with their front office, not bringing in enough weapons for them to have at their disposal. Just when the Falcons are picking it for was there ever a question in your mind, whether they were going to go quarterback or provide you with another weapon. And when they you saw the direction that they went, just what does that tell you about kind of how they view you and your future with with the organization? Well, first, you never know how it's going to go. The longer you play in this league, you just there are no there are no givens there are no certainties. And so, you know, I didn't I didn't know which direction it was going to go at that point. But, you know, obviously I'm excited when you see a guy like Kyle get drafted and the potential that he has in the production that he had in college. You know, those are the things you look at as a quarterback and you're like, man, I'd love to play with a guy like that. And I've been fortunate, you know, throughout my career to play with a bunch of guys like that. And they're fun, you know, they're great to play with. You know, the thing I've been impressed with from him is just, you know, his his humility and his ability to want to work in the first couple of weeks. I think that's, you know, genuine, you know, and I would encourage him to continue to stay that way. Because to me, you know, when you're constantly trying to get better and improve, that's that's the way you get to where you want to go. And he's certainly off to a good start. And, you know, obviously Julio is a big part of what you guys do as an offense. Just what does a Falcons offense without Julio Jones look like? You know, I don't know. He's been such a cornerstone of what we've done for a long time. You know, I don't know, it's a hypothetical, you know, I don't really want to go down that road as it's not really, you know, my business. But he's just been he's been such a great player. He's a hell of a teammate. I love him. And, you know, we'll see how things shake out. But he's probably impacted my career more significantly than any other player. And, you know, I've been really fortunate to be around him for as long as I have.