The Atlanta Falcons are entering the Desmond Ridder era as the rookie quarterback prepares to make his first NFL start on Sunday in New Orleans against the Saints.
Falcons Offensive Coordinator Dave Ragone broke down what the expectations are for Ridder and what the coaching staff views as his best asset when he joined John and Hugh on Thursday morning.
"Anytime you see a guy through preseason games, practice, you think you have an idea how that guy is going to go out and perform," says Ragone. "What we know about Desmond is, in college he's tested in 50 starts, and when he came in here he had a certain level of confidence in who he is as a player. But until he goes out there, until he's facing New Orleans on the first third down and seeing how he reacts, we have an idea but he needs to prove it to himself and we have to help him in terms of preparation and give him a chance to be successful."
Desmond Ridder has not taken a snap during the regular season and his preseason was a mixed-bag of results. Ridder played in all 3 preseason games totaling 34 of 56 passing for 431 yards (143ypg avg.) with 3 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. He also totaled 59 rushing yards on 6 carries in the preseason win over the Detroit Lions that featured his game-winning hail-mary.
To hear all of Dave Ragone's comments, click here.
