Defensive back Logan Ryan has been in the NFL since 2013 when he was drafted in the third round by the New England Patriots.
He went on to spend four years with them before spending the next three years with the Tennessee Titans. Now a free agent, Ryan is considered one of the better defensive backs in all of football.
Due to that, it is pretty surprising that he is still a free agent.
Could that be partially because of Ryan though? Nothing negative against him, but maybe he's just waiting for the right opportunity to play for the right team in the right scheme.
According to Kevin Patra of NFL.com, Ryan compared himself to Kansas City Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu. And, you guessed it, wants to be viewed as a safety himself.
“Look at the numbers — 100 tackles, four sacks, four forced fumbles, the pass break-ups, the INTs. I just feel like that's not really possible too much at just playing corner, so could a team move me around a lot?” Ryan said. “… I was a versatile player, a matchup guy, similar to a Tyrann Mathieu, maybe a Justin Simmons. I feel like that was more the position I was playing last year for Dean Pees, as opposed to a true traditional corner, so it's hard to compare me to that.”
Ryan certainly is a special type of player. He racked up 113 tackles (four for a loss), 4.5 sacks, four interceptions, four forced fumbles and 18 pass deflections last season.
Those are incredible numbers and the type you're only going to see from a very small handful of players.
One of those players is Mathieu. Funnily enough, the two players were selected in the same draft, in the same round. Mathieu was the 69th overall pick, while Ryan was the 83rd overall pick.
Since then, both have blossomed into stars. Mathieu gets more recognition, though, despite Ryan recording better stats in every category listed above except interceptions (they both had four).
So, it definitely is easy to see his point. Logan Ryan plays the game like a safety—and based on last year, you could argue he's very much like Mathieu, and might even be better.
Due to that, maybe it is time for teams to recognize Ryan as a safety. Even more importantly though, it's probably time someone snatches him up and improves their defense drastically.
Follow Us
Subscribe