Matt Ryan Week 1 Outlook -

By Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros), Fri, Sep 11th 2020, 1:12pm EDT

There used to be a time where the Seahawks defense would make you back away and think twice about starting a quarterback. Not anymore. There were 10 quarterbacks who finished as top-18 options against the Seahawks last year and with at least 16.1 fantasy points. Ryan missed the game against the Seahawks last year, but Matt Schaub stepped in and threw for 460 yards and one touchdown, finishing as the QB9 that week. The Seahawks defense lost Quinton Jefferson, Al Woods, Jadeveon Clowney, Ezekiel Ansah, and Mychal Kendricks this offseason, all key members of the front seven. They aren't going to generate pressure on a consistent basis with the players they have, which should allow Ryan to put up some numbers with his group of pass catchers. It's worth noting that no quarterback finished with more than 24.7 fantasy points against the Seahawks last year, which is likely due to the fact that none of them threw for more than two touchdowns. That's a fickle stat that can vary, though it's noteworthy that this defense tightened up down in the red zone. They did, however, allow five different running backs to score multiple rushing touchdowns, so maybe that evens out in 2020. In what I'm projecting to be a high-scoring affair, Ryan should be a safe, high-floor QB1.