Sep 14th 2008 5:05PM by JJ Cooper (author feed)
Filed under: Buccaneers, Falcons, NFC SouthLast week, Matt Ryan had the perfect NFL debut. His first pass was a 62-yard touchdown. He completed his first five passes and had a 21-7 lead before he threw his first incompletion. When it was all over, Ryan had played a large role in the Falcons’ 34-21 win over the Lions.

But this week, Ryan has gotten to see the other side of life as an NFL rookie. Just when you think that things are going well, they fall apart.

Ryan has been completely confused by Buccaneers defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin. He’s 0-for-9 with a pair of interceptions halfway through the second quarter–Ryan only had four incompletions all day last week. And thanks to Ryan’s struggles, Atlanta is already down 17-0, which means the Falcons will have to rely on Ryan’s arm to try to come-from-behind, which is exactly the role he’s likely not ready to handle.

An 0-for-9 start today doesn’t mean Ryan’s going to be a bust, any more than last week’s 9-for-13 day means he’ll be a star, but it does remind everyone that playing in the NFL as a rookie quarterback usually means more bad days than good ones.