ATLANTA _ For eight seasons, Matt Ryan knocked on the door of the NFL's elite quarterback designation. He has reached the postseason, made Pro Bowls, been the face of the Atlanta Falcons. But he never reached the Super Bowl.
In his ninth season, that changes.
Ryan is going to the Super Bowl after the Falcons' 44-21 win over the Green Bay Packers in the NFC championship game. Ryan was the unquestioned star Sunday, throwing for four touchdowns and rushing for one. He completed 27 of 38 passes for 392 yards, while also rushing for 29 yards. It was the first time in Ryan's career he had five combined touchdowns.
The best season of the 31-year-old's career will extend two more weeks. He will be one of the faces of Super Bowl LI on Feb. 5.
In the final game at the Georgia Dome, the Atlanta crowd serenaded Ryan with chants of "M-V-P." He just might be _ the award will be announced the night before the Super Bowl _ and his play this season and postseason puts Ryan in rare company. Ryan outplayed Seattle's Russell Wilson and Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers on successive Sundays. Both Wilson and Rodgers already own Super Bowl rings. Ryan could be next.
It looked like Ryan's day from the opening drive, when he completed 6 of 8 pass attempts for 64 yards and a two-yard touchdown to Mohamad Sanu. After the Packers missed a field goal, Ryan drove the Falcons into field goal range for a 10-0 lead.
The Falcons forced a fumble while Green Bay neared the end zone, with Jalen Collins recovering the fumble and rolling into the end zone for a touchback. It could have potentially been ruled a safety, but the officials did not change the ruling on the field.
The Falcons capitalized on the turnover by going on an 80-yard touchdown drive. Ryan showed his athleticism when he kept the ball for a 14-yard score.
Ryan's favorite target is Julio Jones, who finished with nine catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns. The first score came with three seconds remaining in the first half. The second one came on the Falcons' second offensive play of the second half when Jones took a short pass across the middle and sprinted through and past the Green Bay secondary for a 73-yard touchdown. That gave the Falcons a 31-0 lead, and there was little that could be done to change the outcome during the next 29 minutes other than intrigue for those who gambled on the total points.
The Falcons have been an offensive juggernaut all season. Sunday marked the 13th time this season they topped 30 points and sixth time eclipsing 40 points.
They will need another one in two weeks when they play the winner of Sunday's AFC championship game between the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers _ meaning Ryan will need to beat another Super Bowl-winning quarterback to join their fraternity.
