Matt Ryan Talks Calvin Ridley, Favorite Christmas Gift, More in B/R Exclusive

Everyone has that special holiday present from their childhood they remember. 

Fittingly, it was a football for Matt Ryan.

"I remember one of my favorite gifts of all-time was a Nike football I got in eighth grade," the Atlanta Falcons quarterback told Bleacher Report. "It was a legitimate college Nike football, for me that was one of the things that I just wouldn't put down."

The rest is history, as Ryan is among the best quarterbacks of his generation with a league MVP and four Pro Bowls on his resume.

It is no wonder, then, that the face of the Falcons wants to set today's children up for success by providing access to sports equipment and gear during the holiday season. Ryan teamed up with Dick's Sporting Goods and the Dick's Sporting Goods Foundation to help give under-resourced communities just that.

"There's just no telling which gift they're giving is going to connect with that kid and springboard them to use it as motivation to move forward in that area," he said. "I believe that sports matter and impact kids in a positive way, and I think that Dick's is doing a great job of promoting that."

Dick's Sporting Goods and the Dick's Sporting Goods Foundation are giving the gift of sport to 10,000 children in New York City, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Dallas, New Orleans and Atlanta through the Sports Matter Giving Truck and with the help of athletes such as Ryan, Candace Parker and Blake Griffin.

The truck recently stopped at the houses of young athletes from the Atlanta Youth Tennis & Education Foundation and surprised families with equipment and a virtual appearance from Ryan himself.

To stay safe during the pandemic, Ryan—who posted about the experience on his Instagram page—appeared on television screens that were mounted to the truck and was still able to interact with the children and enjoy their reactions to the gifts.

Photo Credit: Dick's Sporting Goods

"It was cool to see their faces light up," he said. "You know, 2020 has obviously been a tough year for everybody, so to put a smile on the faces of some kids that can use it was fun to be a part of and a huge credit to what Dick's is doing and their Sporting Goods Foundation is doing across the country. They're to be commended for that."

Focusing on helping children is nothing new for Ryan, who has consistently teamed up with the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta for the Matt Ryan Celebrity-Am Classic golf tournament and sought out opportunities to give back to his community.

"It's always been important to my wife (Sarah) and I to help out in our community, specifically in the area," he said. "It's just been a tough year for kids in general. They've had to go through so many changes with different ways to do school and not as many after-school activities and sports. To just play a small part during the holiday season by giving back and putting smiles on kids' faces in a year where they could really use it just seemed like something that, not only myself, but we all should be doing."

Photo Credit: Dick's Sporting Goods

While Ryan has continued to give back off the field, it has been a disappointing season on it.

His Falcons fell to 4-10 with Sunday's 31-27 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which featured yet another blown lead. Atlanta lost its 24-7 advantage in the second half, continuing the theme of an inability to close out games after impressive starts.

It was not all bad, though, as Ryan played well on an individual level and threw for 356 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions even with Julio Jones sidelined. A major reason for his success was the immediate connection he established with Calvin Ridley, who finished with 10 catches for 163 yards and a score.

Ryan had nothing but positive things to say about the third-year receiver who already has career highs with 77 catches and 1,192 receiving yards this season:

"He's only going to continue to get better. Year 3 is typically a year where guys start to take off, and I think Calvin has done that. He had a great rookie year, really good second year, but I think he's played at another level. He's just so comfortable in his routine of getting ready week-to-week. Knows how to get himself from a physical standpoint and also mental standpoint just dialed in week-in and week-out. I think his confidence is continuing to grow. His skill set is awesome, and now that his confidence is getting greater and greater, I think that the sky's the limit for him. He's going to be one of the better receivers in our league for a long time."

With Ridley helping spearhead a strong aerial attack, Ryan also passed Fran Tarkenton for 10th on the all-time touchdown pass list with his 343rd. He is now behind only Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Dan Marino, Philip Rivers, Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisberger and Eli Manning in the category.

Photo Credit: Dick's Sporting Goods

"He's one of the greats of all-time," he said when talking about Tarkenton. "To be on that list and in that same category is special, I'm proud of that for sure. Hopefully there's still a lot of good football in front of me and many more years to go, but I'm certainly proud of where I'm at."

There isn't much football in front of the Falcons for the rest of the 2020 campaign with no chance at the playoffs, but they can still play spoiler in the race for seeding for the Kansas City Chiefs and Buccaneers.

Ryan believes such a challenging two-game road trip to end the season presents an opportunity for the struggling team.

"We're playing two really good football teams to finish," he said. "It's a good measuring stick for us and hopefully a momentum-builder as we head into 2021. There's gonna be a lot of changes, there's no doubt about that for us in our organization. But for the guys that remain, this can be one of those things, particularly for young guys, to learn how to go on the road and how to beat a good football team. This can be a building block for us as we move forward."

Just like the gear he and Dick's Sporting Goods provided can be a building block for kids to develop their skills and pursue their athletic careers.