No way did it seem likely that Ryan would do anything more than become your typical rookie at that position and stumble when he wasn't rumbling or bumbling.

No way did it seem possible for the Falcons to go from sorry to solid within a year courtesy of that same rookie quarterback.

OK, I was wrong. Then again, so were a slew of others, including a Hall of Fame quarterback who still rubs his eyes while watching Ryan become, well, let Steve Young tell you.

"Frankly, what this guy is doing is unprecedented in the history of the game, and to be honest with you, I really can't fathom it all," said Young, now an ESPN analyst and a Ryan groupie, failing to contain his glee over the phone from his home city of Palo Alto, Calif.

This is a guy who owns two NFL MVP trophies. He has the league's highest career passer rating. He was a Super Bowl MVP after throwing a record six touchdowns. He won six league passing titles.

This also is a guy who shuns hyperbole, so this is significant: Young said without hesitation that, "Even though it won't be a bed of roses along the way, Matt Ryan already has shown me enough to say that he'll be one of the all-time greats."

Wow.

Let's catch our breath. Young rarely did during this interview. He was so eager to discuss Ryan that he continued to talk on his cellphone while jogging.

Said Young, recalling the Falcons' chaos of last season involving Michael Vick and Bobby Petrino, "It was almost a year ago to the day that I was in Atlanta for a Monday night game, and I thought the Falcons were flat on their backs. They already had been among the worst teams in the NFL for years, and given everything that happened last season, there was absolutely no way you could expect this."

Here's what "this" entails: Ryan, Ryan and more Ryan. He has helped the 8-5 Falcons double their 2007 victory total to become playoff contenders. He throws every type of pass well (short, medium, deep, impossible, improbable and unbelievable). He is a master at handling the blitz. He inspires his teammates. He looks as poised now as Young did at the height of his career with the San Francisco 49ers.

Although the Falcons lost in New Orleans last Sunday, Ryan still was impressive with 315 yards courtesy of clutch throws. His passer rating of 92.0 is ninth-best in the league, but it remains 6.8 points shy of Young's career mark.

So Ryan isn't there yet.

Young laughed, saying, "Just wait. Dan Marino had success as a rookie, but he had a Dolphins team that already was a playoff contender. Ben Roethlisberger had success as a rookie, but his Steelers team also was a playoff contender already. This guy was drafted by the worst team in Football, and he's like a bolt of lightning."

That bolt needed a spark, and it came from Young's old backup with the 49ers, Bill Musgrave, now the Falcons' quarterback coach. "Billy knows Football and quarterbacks as well as anybody I've ever met, and he's into details," Young said. "If you want to be the consummate quarterback, Billy is your guy, and you can see his influence here."

Young stopped jogging to add, "These are just flat-out facts in my mind. [Ryan] passes the eyeball test."

He passes every test.

tlmoore@ajc.com