Matt Ryan Doesn't Play Well When the Offensive Line Sucks

My general theme this week is stuff or people that suck. It's not intentional, it's just been that kind of week. On Monday, I wrote about how Michael Turner doesn't like sucking. Today we're going to talk about what happens when the offensive line sucks.

As this article argues, bad things happen.

[Matt Ryan] was hit or sacked 11 times by Raider defenders, and on 12 pass attempts under pressure he had a miniscule passer rating of 11.1. That stems from the fact he completed only four passes for 60 yards while throwing two interceptions.

Yes, in case you didn't notice, Ryan threw two of those picks under heavy duress. He's still "responsible" for those picks, but they likely don't happen if he's adequately protected.

An automatic 30 point drop in your pass rating sucks - it sucks. And that happens when our offensive line sucks. It happens when Todd McClure and Tyson Clabo don't do their job. Dave put it well in his article about bye week priorities. Both men have given a lot to this team, but Ryan isn't the type of quarterback who can thrive notwithstanding pressure. Heck, I'm not sure that quarterback exists. But Ryan certainly isn't him.