Report sheds light on why Matt Ryan was benched

Jan 31, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan answers questions during a press conference at Westin Houston Memorial City Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

The Indianapolis Colts on Monday made the surprising decision to bench Matt Ryan, and there is at least one NFL insider who appears to have seen it coming.

Albert Breer of The MMQB published his weekly column hours before the Colts announced that they plan to start Sam Ehlinger for the remainder of the season. In the column, Breer revealed that he has spoken with scouts around the NFL who believe Ryan’s throwing arm is “shot.”

“I can say, after asking around, that there are scouts who think Matt Ryan’s arm is shot. And it definitely looks like he has to work harder to get the ball where he wants it to go,” Breer wrote. “That said, the Colts’ quarterback is fighting his tail off.”

The Colts must agree with that assessment. Ryan has thrown nine interceptions this season, which is the most of any quarterback in the NFL. Indy’s offensive line has been terrible, but Ryan was definitely struggling to get the ball downfield and unable to make some throws into tight windows.

While Ryan is supposedly dealing with a shoulder injury, the Colts planned to make the switch to Ehlinger regardless. The 2021 sixth-round pick has yet to start a game in his young NFL career.

The Colts were high on Ryan when they acquired him in a trade with the Atlanta Falcons. They came one win short of making the playoffs with Carson Wentz last season, and most people thought Ryan would be a huge upgrade. That is not how it panned out.

Colts owner Jim Irsay recently had a massive compliment for Ryan, but the team obviously was not very high on the 37-year-old through seven games.