Matt Ryan has had an up and down year under Arthur Smith in their first year together, but this statistic may surprise some fans. According to Pro Football Focus, Ryan is the most accurate quarterback on 10+ yard throws…
That is extremely hard for me to believe as Ryan tops Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert. The veteran quarterback has always been fairly accurate, regardless of arm strength. Ryan’s 67.5% completion percentage this season is the fourth-highest mark of his career, but his 6.9 yards per attempt is the fourth-lowest mark of his career.
This statistic completely contradicts my eye test of how Ryan has been performing recently. Without referencing statistics, I would say Ryan has been less accurate on deep throws than short throws. He’s at his best playing in rhythm within any given system on short to intermediate throws with the ability to fit passes in tight windows under those circumstances.
Even though his completion percentage is high, his yards per attempt is low. Moreover, Ryan is having his worst yards per pass completed (10.2) in his entire career. There’s no debate he’s lost some zip on his ball, but this statistic says it hasn’t affected his intermediate passing nearly as much as it appears when we all watch him on Sundays.
More must-reads: