In his first appearance in the broadcast booth, Matt Ryan was met with a rather unwelcome reminder of one of the most infamous moments in his career. His new partner decided to greet him with a ’28-3′ dig, referring to the Atlanta Falcons’ notorious Super Bowl LI loss to the New England Patriots.
Ryan, former quarterback for the Falcons, joined his co-host in the commentary box for what was expected to be an exciting debut. However, things took an unexpected turn when he was reminded of that fateful game where they blew a 25-point lead against Tom Brady’s team.
The ’28-3′ reference has become synonymous with one of sport’s biggest comebacks and collapses all at once. During Super Bowl LI in 2017, Atlanta led New England by a scoreline of 28-3 midway through third quarter before ultimately losing out 34-28 in overtime 😢.
Despite this initial jibe from his colleague, Ryan handled it like a true professional. He laughed off the comment and continued on with their discussion about football strategy and player performance analysis without missing a beat.
This incident just goes to show how even those who have experienced such crushing defeat can still face it head-on and continue forward without letting it define them or their careers.
While some may see this as nothing more than friendly banter between colleagues or perhaps even some sort of initiation ritual into sports broadcasting world – others might argue that there is no place for such reminders especially during someone’s first day on job.
However you choose to perceive this situation though – whether as an act of camaraderie or insensitivity – there’s no denying that handling such situations gracefully requires strength and resilience which Matt Ryan clearly demonstrated here today.
Moving forward from this incident will undoubtedly require focus not only from Matt but also from rest of broadcasting team as well because ultimately success lies within ability to work together despite any past differences or disagreements they may have had.
In conclusion, while this ’28-3′ dig was surely a surprise for Matt Ryan on his debut day in broadcast booth; it’s also an opportunity for him to prove that he can handle any curveball thrown his way – both literally and metaphorically. And if today’s reaction is anything to go by, then we are sure to see great things from this new broadcasting duo in future games.
