FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – Discipline and consistency.
Those are the two words Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan will emphasize to his teammates when they begin their offseason program next Monday.
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As the leader of the offense, Ryan's message will set the tone for how the Falcons attack the offseason.
"I think it's about discipline and consistency," Ryan said before his annual golf tournament at TPC Sugarloaf on Monday. "I think that's the No. 1 thing. I think we've got to have a mindset that every time we're in a meeting, every time we step on the practice field we're doing it with purpose and that the attention to detail, the mindfulness to everything we do has to be at a higher level. That's going to be my goal and I hope that's the messaging that we can kind of send to everybody. Let's be as detailed [and] sharp as we can possibly be right from the start."
Now, don't expect to see any wholesale changes from Atlanta's offense in the upcoming season. But as coach Dan Quinn said at league meetings in Orlando, there will be "new wrinkles for sure" and the style in which the Falcons attack on offense will remain the same.
The team returns majority of their core starters from the 2017 season and offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian returns for his second season. In addition to Sarkisian and Ryan having one season of working together in the books, having Julio Jones healthy for a full offseason is also something Quinn believes will help the unit take another step forward.
Heading into the offseason workout program which includes three phases, the team will have a clear understanding of what the No. 1 priority is and that's improving the scoring offense, according to Quinn.
Atlanta scored a touchdown on 50 percent of its trips inside of the red zone last season, which ranked 23rd in the NFL.
But back to what Ryan said on Monday. The Falcons quarterback said it all starts with consistency and he didn't shy away from saying there were a number of areas he wants his offense to improve in this offseason.
"I think last year we were inconsistent on the offensive side of the ball," Ryan said. "I thought there were some really good things, but I thought there were some things that we could be better at. The exciting part is that we have an opportunity to get started this Monday. To clean those things up, to be a better football team than we were last year and to be the best offense that this group of guys can possibly be."
