What to expect out of Matt Ryan in Indianapolis
The Indianapolis Colts decided to move on from having Carson Wentz as their quarterback and traded with the Atlanta Falcons to get former MVP, Matt Ryan, to be under center for this talented team that missed the playoffs last season. Ryan has done very well throughout his career and is on the brink of being a Hall of Fame quarterback when it is all said and done. Today, we are going to dive into his projections for the 2022 regular season and decide how well he should play with his new team.
The Coca Cola 600 is quickly approaching and now is the time to hop into the action. It is always nice to supplement your bankroll with additional profits as it makes betting a lot more fun when you do not have to leave a deposit. These odds for Matt Ryan’s 2022 stats are provided via DraftKings so depending on where you look, the odds and the numbers can alter a bit.
Matt Ryan’s Passing Yards (3950.5)
Matt Ryan has shown the ability to throw the football at an incredible rate. If Ryan is able to play all 17 games this season, he would need to throw for 233 passing yards per game for the over to hit. Instead of having Kyle Pitts and a partial season from Calvin Ridley before his hiatus, Ryan will be throwing the ball to the likes of wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr, rookie wide receiver Alec Pierce, wide receiver Parris Campbell, as well as throwing to running back Jonathan Taylor a bit as well. The level of talent is leagues above what the Atlanta Falcons had in 2021 so that should help.
Atlanta ran the ball on 39.07 percent of all offensive plays last season while Indianapolis ran on 47.43 percent of all plays, so that will be a big thing to keep in mind. I believe as long as Matt Ryan is healthy and starting all 17 regular-season games, he should easily eclipse this total so the over is the better option.
See more: AFC North predictions for the 2022 NFL regular season
Matt Ryan’s Passing Touchdowns (25.5)
Passing touchdowns provide a bit more variance as the offense is built for Jonathan Taylor to dominate on the ground game. Carson Wentz managed to throw for 27 touchdowns last season in this offense and Matt Ryan should be a solid enough player to replicate this number, if not eclipse it totally. He would need to throw two touchdowns per game in order to eclipse the total and that should happen this upcoming season but feels a little too close.
Ryan has thrown 26 touchdowns on the nose for two of the previous three seasons so this is a tougher call. I think the variance involved and the fact the offensive gameplan centers around running back Jonathan Taylor means the attempts in the red zone are going to go more towards handing the ball off than throwing it into the end zone. All in all, go with under 25.5 touchdown passes from Ryan as it seems to be the smarter play.
Conclusion
This Indianapolis Colts offense should be able to thrive in the American Football Conference (AFC) South specifically with Matt Ryan leading the way. Scoring against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans, and Houston Texans for six games should significantly boost his numbers up as their defenses are good as their ceiling. Matt Ryan is one of the better and more cerebral quarterbacks in the National Football League, so he should dominate throwing the ball and get to at least 4,000 passing yards. He can also throw the ball significantly well with better-skill position players than what the Atlanta Falcons had the previous few years.
This should be a new beginning for Matt Ryan and touchdowns are a variance statistic as you can be the best quarterback and not throw for many touchdowns as it is mostly circumstantial. Ryan is doing well throughout his career and should do well in his first season as a member of the Indianapolis Colts.
