Buccaneers vs Falcons preview: Will Matt Ryan finally beat Tom Brady for the first time in his career?

Although Matt Ryan has never defeated Tom Brady in his career, he should not be ashamed. Unfortunately, this is likely to be the case for several of Tom Brady's opponents. Since he took over for Drew Bledsoe on a full-time basis, Tom Brady has been virtually unstoppable.

The duo of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady have a winning percentage of 77% together. However, Belichick is three games under 500 without the help of Tom Brady. Their reign together lasted from the middle of the 2001 season all the way to the end of the 2019-2020 NFL season.

Along the way, many NFL quarterbacks have taken losses from Brady. However, there may not have been any with more NFL starts and accolades than the Atlanta Falcons' Matt Ryan.

Who exactly IS Matt Ryan

Matty Ice, as he is known affectionately to Falcons fans, has been the pillar of consistency since being drafted by the Falcons in the 2008 NFL draft. Although the Falcons have been through more than a few coaches during his Falcons tenure, including Mike Smith, Dan Quinn, Raheem Morris (served as interim head coach for a time in the 2020 season) and now Arthur Smith, Matt Ryan has been the stabilizing force for Falcons fans.

The pinnacle of Ryan's success would undoubtedly be taking the Falcons to the Super Bowl at the end of the 2016 NFL season. That year, Ryan threw for 38 touchdowns and 4,944 yards. He was also named as the NFL MVP in that same year.

The opponent for that Super Bowl was the New England Patriots and none other than Tom Brady. The two had met before but obviously there was a lot more on the line now. Although the Falcons led by a score of 28-3, the Patriots won the game by a score of 34-28.

It's now or never for Matt Ryan

This week, Matt Ryan will get another chance to finally try to get an elusive win against Tom Brady. What do the Falcons need to do in order to finally get the job done? It all starts with Matt Ryan taking his 0-5 record versus Brady personally.

Now that Julio Jones is gone and star rookie Kyle Pitts is just getting started, it's up to Matt Ryan to keep his team loose while urging them that the world champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers can be defeated. Along with Pitts, Ryan must utilize the offensive talents of Calvin Ridley and Cordarrelle Patterson if he hopes to keep up with the Bucs' offensive firepower.

Playing in what is likely the twilight of his career, it's now or never for Matty Ice to take down his arch-nemesis. It's finally time to "rise up", for the Falcons.