Advice: Not all were his fault, of course. There were protection issues and tipped balls and receivers not always running the proper route. But it all comes back to the quarterback, the guy known as Matty Ice. "You've got to ride the ebb and flow of a season," Ryan said. "There's going to be ups and downs. It's a long, long year. At the end of it, you look back and kind of judge how you did."

Recommendation: Not to put too fine of a point on it, but Ryan was the primary reason Atlanta couldn't keep pace with the Saints' offense in Monday night's shootout. While one of his interceptions came on a Hail Mary at the end of the game, Ryan still threw two other costly picks (one that was returned for a touchdown and one that ended a Falcons drive) and completed only 45.2 percent of his passes. While Ryan is still in a great situation and has undeniable talent, he has seemed to take a step back the past two weeks.