Desmond Ridder ‘Our Quarterback For The Future’ – Blank

Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank says the franchise has faith that second-year quarterback Desmond Ridder will establish himself next season.

Desmond Ridder took over from Marcus Mariota for the final four games of last season. The third-round pick wasn’t spectacular with two wins and two defeats.

Desmond Ridder had 73-of-115 passes for 708 yards and a 2-0 touchdown-to-interception ratio. His passer rating of 86.4 gave the Falcons hope he will excel given more regular game time.

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“I like our young quarterback,” Arthur Blank said.

“People look at just the last four games last year and they say, well, based on those four games, but he really progressed from the time he came on campus here after he was drafted, had a good camp, and he’s been a strong leader since he’s shown up here. Continued to develop. Worked well with (Marcus) Mariota last year, learned a lot from Marcus. He’s a learner, and he’s got a lot of humility.

“As the year progressed, he had an opportunity to play, and I think he played at a very competitive level. Those last four games each game seemed to be a little bit better. So, we feel pretty strongly that he’s going to be our quarterback of the future. We’ve got to play games and we’ve got to see, but we feel good about him.”

As well as enthusiasm over Ridder, Atlanta has focussed on reinforcing the defense this offseason. DE Calais Campbell, DT David Onyemata and safety Jessie Bates have all been recruited.

Read: Kayvon Thibodeaux Targets Availability For Every Game In 2023

“This is the third year of a three-year plan, and I think what I see and what I like a lot is coach (Arthur) Smith and (general manager) Terry Fontenot laid out a very careful, thoughtful, kind of methodical plan of what they were going to do,” Blank said. 

“I think we’re moving in the right direction. This year I expect our team to be even more competitive, if you will, with the emphasis on the defensive side of the ball during free agency. … I think we have as many offensive tools as probably most if any team in the NFL today. We’ve got a lot of talent. Obviously, (an) experienced offensive line that performed at a high level last year. … I like where we are.”