Atlanta Falcons rookie quarterback Matt Ryan is the 2009 ESPN NEXT Winner (Whatever that means…)
Yes, the Atlanta Falcons rookie is this year’s ESPN NEXT winner.
With Matt Ryan leading the Atlanta Falcons to what has been an unexpectedly solid campaign for the Vick-less birds in the 2008-09 NFL football season, choosing him to win ESPN’s annual celebration of the sporting world’s next big thing was easy.
With Michael Vick casted away from Atlanta, Matt Ryan did more than just filling in the guy’s shoes until he comes back with the Falcons, hopefully. With the kind of season Ryan has been having this year, Atlanta probably has already forgotten all about Vick, once one of football’s most explosive players.
And if ever Michael Vick does 
come back and joins the Falcons, he’s now expendable since the Falcons already know they have a young quarterback who can lead them to playoff appearances now.
Matt Ryan is now the man in the ATL and him becoming the 2009 ESPN NEXT Athlete should not surprise Falcon fans.
Matt Ryan wasn’t supposed to launch his first NFL pass 62 yards for a touchdown or earn NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors in only his eighth start for the Atlanta Falcons. He wasn’t suppose to lead a playoff charge with pretty much the same supporting cast that finished last in the division a season ago either, all the while winning over a significant segment of local fans who remained loyal to Michael Vick.
But because he has, the Atlanta Falcons are winning, and while he maybe is ESPN’s NEXT athlete, to the Falcons, he is THE athlete, NOW.
”Because of Matt, people are talking about us now,” Atlanta Falcons safety Lawyer Milloy, a 13-year veteran, said. ”I don’t have a lot of time left in the NFL, so I’m trying to ride him now. That’s how much I believe in him.”
”He’s a Tom Brady/Peyton Manning type who can win multiple Super Bowls,” adds receiver Michael Jenkins, who caught Matt Ryan’s first ever touchdown pass in the NFL.
Matt Ryan is ESPN’s NEXT athlete who can lead the Falcons to places NOW. Let’s hope he doesn’t make a fool of himself when they do make an appearance this season in the playoffs.
Who will win Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, Florida? Bodog sportsbook has the odds.
New York Giants 17.00
New England Patriots 4.50
Dallas Cowboys 7.00
Indianapolis Colts 8.50
Want more odds? Visit Bodog sportsbook for more football betting odds. Want to watch the NFL live? Get NFL tickets online now.
March 23rd, 2009 at 7:20 am
Very nice Atlanta Falcons information. I hope to be in Atlanta for a game this summer.