Despite showing potential in a small sample size at the end of last season after taking over for Marcus Mariota, second-year QB Desmond Ridder has had more questions than answers regarding his potential going into the 2023 season. Lately, Falcons HC Arthur Smith has been hesitant to “oversell the unknown” and seems to be treading lightly when it comes to the expectations of his presumed starting QB going into this season.
92.9 The Game Falcons Insider Joe Patrick joined Andy & Randy on The Midday Show and gave his thoughts on the recent soundbites from Smith when asked about his potential signal-caller going into this season.
“I think if there’s anything we’ve learned from Arthur Smith over his couple years here, so far, is that’s he’s not going to anoint anybody,” Patrick said. “He’s not going to just anoint a player a position or a role, everything is earned in his eyes.”
“And honestly, I think it’s a breath of fresh air because I think that what he says I think everyone would agree with – which is basically that we’re going to go into this season with Desmond Ridder, we’re going to surround him with a bunch of pieces that hopefully give him the best chance to succeed but he’d be a fool to say he thinks he knows how it’s going to turn out.”
The Falcons made sure to add depth to the QB position by signing some homegrown talent in former Collins Hill QB Taylor Heinicke to a two-year deal going into this season. Heinicke showed some flashes during his time in Washington, leading the Commanders to five 4th QTR comeback wins over the past two seasons but has struggled to keep his turnover numbers low.
With the way this offense has been constructed, it’d be safe to say that the quarterback for the Falcons is 2023-24 won’t be asked to do much outside of their comfort zone.
So while Falcons fans are primed for Ridder to be under center come Week 1, don’t dismiss the fact that both QB’s will come into training camp with their eyes on the starting spot and expect a competition that could stretch late into the preseason.
