Promotion
Regina's Ryan makes playoff debut

Regina's Ryan makes playoff debut

When the Packers host the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday, their Canadian born punter will be making his NFL playoff debut.

"The most exciting part is the buildup," Ryan told the Regina Leader-Post. who is in his second NFL season with the Packers after playing in the Canadian Football League with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

"I was talking to Mason (Crosby, Green Bay's rookie kicker) earlier in the week and we said that once the game starts, it's just another football game. You can forget about all that other stuff and just play football again. All the hype leading up to it is really exciting.

"I don't want to change anything. I want to stick to the same thing because you might psyche yourself out if you were changing anything just because you think it's a bigger game."

Ryan, who signed with the team as a free agent prior to the 2006 season, is now in his second season with the team.

"This week everything's a little bit more intense, there's more attention to detail and there's more of a buzz in the air around here," Ryan told the Leader-Post. "It's a pretty exciting time around here. In the NFL, only 12 of 32 teams make it to the playoffs and only eight of 32 make it this far.

"I watched the (playoff) games, but I used to watch them a lot closer when I wasn't playing. Now it feels a little like work because we're going to go in after the game and look at all the film. It's different than watching the live feed; you can really see what's going on. When I'm watching at home, it's still kind of like watching as a fan."

Ryan ranked seventh among regular NFL punters this season with an average of 44.4 yards per punt.