Atlanta Falcons: Desmond Ridder is continuing to show why he is the long-term answer at quarterback

The Atlanta Falcons traded away their franchise quarterback, Matt Ryan, earlier this offseason. They signed Marcus Mariota to a two-year deal via free agency, but the most intriguing piece of the puzzle going forward is their 2022 third-round pick, Desmond Ridder.

Desmond Ridder spent the last five years on the Cincinnati Bearcats campus. After redshirting in 2017, Ridder would go on to start 48 games over the next four seasons, including a program-altering 13-1 campaign in 2021. Throughout his collegiate career, Ridder improved every season. His overall accuracy and ball placement manifested itself in his best season as a passer in 2021. Even though Ridder used his legs less as a senior, his other three seasons as a starter saw the quarterback eclipse the 550-yard mark in each.

The Atlanta Falcons had an eye on Ridder the entire time if you believe what the front office is selling. If they had any questions regarding Ridder’s athleticism or professionalism, those were put to rest quickly at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Ridder aced team interviews, flexed his impressive football IQ, and showed everyone in attendance how elite of an athlete he truly is. The sneaky athlete blazed a 4.52 40-yard dash at the event, which is absurd for a quarterback. For example, Justin Fields is a more fluid mover, but he ran a 4.44 40-yard dash, showing that Ridder is up there with the best of athletes.

The Atlanta Falcons did not take Desmond Ridder with any of their first three selections in the 2022 NFL Draft. After the signal-caller suffered a major tumble down the draft board, he finally got the call from Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot. At No. 74 overall, Atlanta got themselves a potential long-term replacement in the same offseason that they sent away franchise legend, Matt Ryan. From the moment Ridder was taken, he has vowed to make every team in the league pay for passing on him. So far, the returns have been up and down, but the positives far outweigh the negatives.

The soon-to-be 23-year-old quarterback has been among the first in the building every morning since being drafted. As stated by Josh Kendall of The Athletic:

This type of behavior aligns with what he exhibited during his time at Cincinnati. A trait that Ridder unanimously passes in the eyes of scouts is his natural ability to lead a group. He is the epitome of a leader by example, on and off the field. Ridder is a young father and credits that as a major reason why he’s as mature as he is at this age. In an article, shared by a Senior Writer for ESPN by the name of Peter Thamel, Ridder expresses his pure joy about being a girl dad:

Although Ridder is advanced in maturity off the field, he still has a lot to learn when it comes to the game speed of the NFL. Ridder is a quick mental processor, and given his four dozen starts in college, he has accrued loads of invaluable experience behind center. Certain aspects of the pro game are going to require even more growth from Ridder as he maneuvers his way through year one in the NFL. His biggest red flags currently all boil down to a lack of accuracy. Even on completions, Ridder is guilty of putting the ball on his receiver’s back hip and killing any momentum they had built up.

The fact that a veteran is ahead of Ridder on the depth chart allows the team to let the young field general grow at his own pace. Marcus Mariota is looking to revive his career in Atlanta, teaming up with a former coach of his in Tennessee, Arthur Smith. The Falcon’s head coach has said all along that the best player will start, and early on in training camp, it was clear who the better player is according to Jeff Schultz of The Athletic:

Other reporters on hand reported similar struggles for Ridder as training camp opened up, but over the past two weeks, he has begun to settle in. It was a constant theme with Ridder in college. He would start games out with jitters, but once he dialed everything back in, he was a surgeon at quarterback. There have still been some rough patches, but the number of impressive throws has increased tenfold since July ended. While Mariota is still perched atop the depth chart, the gap is seemingly closing with each preseason appearance that Ridder makes.

His first NFL action came against the Detroit Lions, where Ridder again came out very shaky when he took over the reins. The box score tells the rollercoaster story, as Ridder failed to complete 50% of his passes, but still served as the main reason the team charged back in the fourth quarter to secure the comeback victory. The most promising part aside from Ridder’s patented clutch gene is the fact that the quarterback was given a chance to make plays with his legs as well. He tallied 59 rushing yards on only six carries and threw for 103 yards and two touchdowns through the air. Here is that game-winning toss to Jared Bernhardt:

Following the late-game heroics in his NFL debut, Ridder would see a lot of action in the second game of the preseason, this time against the New York Jets. Both teams are coming off of dismal 2021 seasons, so the hunger for improvement is real on both sides of this matchup. In game two, Ridder came out and looked more confident from the jump. He hit his passes at a much higher clip, completing 10 of 13 passes for 143 yards. Ridder stayed in the pocket more in this game, failing to record a single rush during his time on the field. He used this to showcase the growth he’s made in the pocket since his time in college. Here is another well-thrown ball against the Jets:

It is easy to see why Ridder was viewed as the most pro-ready quarterback heading into the 2022 NFL Draft by some. He is quite polished and refined when it comes to technique and fundamentals, and when he speaks, it makes you want to run through a brick wall for him. There are still a few reasons that show why he fell in the draft, too. Ridder must continue to sharpen up his footwork and ball placement. A lot of his throwing motion is picturesque, but his bottom half can get away from him at times. The same can be said about his accuracy, as he sometimes struggles to put the ball in a spot where his pass catchers can add yards after the catch.

The good news? Ridder is aware of these shortcomings in his game. He has his fair share of critics that still believe the quarterback peaked in college and that he lacks the accuracy to survive in this league. While the deficiencies in his game are valid and worthy of being highlighted as such, it has become a foolish bet to go against Desmond Ridder. He has helped turn a program that was often an afterthought on the national scene into one of the premier destinations in college football. They may never be a blue blood, but Ridder and Co. helped put the school squarely on the map.

The Atlanta Falcons will be looking to Ridder to spearhead the next era of football for the franchise. Even though Marcus Mariota has put together a strong offseason and proved that he should be a starter in this league, there’s still more of a placeholder feel to him than a long-term solution. Similar to what the Detroit Lions are doing with Jared Goff, Mariota has the experience to command a locker room and keep the team competitive week in and week out. For the Falcons to reach the heights they want to, they’ll either need to draft another quarterback or put all their eggs in the Desmond Ridder basket.

Betting on Ridder to succeed has produced a phenomenal return on investment for all of those that had the foresight to see his ascension coming. After leading the team to their first-ever College Football Playoff appearance, Ridder undoubtedly left the program in a better place than he found it. Now, he arrives to a Falcons team that somehow won seven games in 2021, due in large part to the steady leadership of former quarterback Matt Ryan. Now, it is up to Mariota to serve as the QB1 in Atlanta. But don’t be surprised if Ridder lives up to his billing and pushes for the starting spot by the season’s end. He has yet to fail on this journey, so let’s see if he can deliver on his promise to bring a Super Bowl to the ATL.