The Colts made a big move in the offseason by trading for veteran quarterback Matt Ryan, who left Atlanta after 14 years. Carson Wentz failed to impress and, after only one year, Indianapolis decided to change the direction.
But so far, the former Falcons signal-caller got off to a slow start with his new team. The Colts’ season opener against the Houston Texans finished in a stalemate, but things got much worse the following week.
On Sunday, the Jacksonville Jaguars destroyed the Colts 24-0, limiting Ryan to just 16 of 30 passes completed, 195 yards and three interceptions. Even so, Frank Reich said the 37-year-old quarterback is not to blame.
Colts HC Frank Reich has Matt Ryan’s back after ugly Jaguars loss
“I mean the protection yesterday wasn’t our best effort. He was under duress a number of times,” Reich said, via ProFootballTalk. “There’s still mistakes that he made, that we all make, but I think overall — listen, I understand how the quarterback position is. You’re really dependent on everybody else on there, but you’re at the center of it so you have to make it work.
“What I love about Matt is that he takes responsibility. He’s the leader. I could not be happier that he’s our quarterback. He’s an elite leader and I really believe he can be an elite player in this offense. We’ve all got to pull it together. We all have got to carry our own weight, each one of us, including him and everybody on that offense.”
