With age comes wisdom and, lately in the NFL, getting older at the quarterback position can mean getting better. After missing the playoffs last season, the Colts are hoping 37-year-old Matt Ryan is the missing piece to a Super Bowl puzzle.
Nine teams will be starting a new quarterback in Week 1, and none of the new starters are rookies. The oldest of the group is Ryan, an accurate passer and veteran leader who still might have what it takes to lift a young Indianapolis team over the top.
It’s not too much to ask of an older quarterback to switch teams and win a title in the first year — it worked for Tom Brady and the Buccaneers two years ago and for Matthew Stafford and the Rams last season.
Time will tell if Ryan and the Colts are the right match. The first test comes Sunday, when the Colts open as road favorites against the rebuilding Texans and their second-year quarterback, Davis Mills.