The Falcons are expected to exercise Matt Schaub’s $2MM option for 2020, a source tells NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). This doesn’t completely guarantee his place on the roster in September, but it’s an indication that they intend to keep the veteran as Matt Ryan‘s backup.
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Schaub, 39 in June, was thrust into action last year when Ryan suffered his ankle injury. In his first start since the 2015 season, Schaub completed 75% of his passes and threw for 460 yards. Still, the Falcons fell short, losing 27-20 to the Seahawks.
Schaub came back to where it all started in 2016 and signed a two year, $3.78MM extension to stay with the Falcons in 2019. He spent seven years as the Texans starter and collected two Pro Bowl nominations in some of his healthier seasons. Since 2014, he’s served as a backup for the Raiders, Ravens, and Falcons.
The veteran is now slated to come back for another year with a reasonable cap hit of $2.375MM. Meanwhile, the offseason could see the departure of mainstays like running back Devonta Freeman. Unfortunately for them, they’re tight against the cap as they look to overhaul their defense. A new deal for tight end Austin Hooper is on the to-do list, but it might not be feasible to give him a multi-year deal at the top of the market.
They’d be better off with a rookie QB to learn. But that’s why losing teams stay in the rut.
$2 million is reasonable for a backup, and if they draft a rookie they could put him at third on the depth chart so that he wouldn’t have to be rushed into action if Matt Ryan gets hurt. If anything, this makes it easier for a rookie.
I can’t imagine there are many rookies eager to be drafted by the Falcons. They already have a depth chart that goes 5 deep at QB.
I’m surprised his option wasn’t picked off & taken to the house
You misread the article, they are talking about Matt Schaub, not Matt Ryan…. lol