Falcons 2023 season review: Quarterbacks

Ridder, a former third-round pick who had a storied career at Cincinnati, started committing turnovers an alarming rate. He finished with 12 interceptions and 11 fumbles.

Former coach Arthur Smith just wanted him to manage the game and get the ball to the weapons on the offense, but that was too tall of a task for him. The Falcons ended up playing musical chairs at the quarterback position, going back and forth between Ridder and Taylor Heinicke, who was declared the starter twice.

When Heinicke, who played at Collins Hill High School, sustained an ankle injury, Ridder found out 90 minutes before kickoff that he would start the regular-season finale. He was fine for a half, but three plays in to the third quarter he tossed an interception that ignited a 31-0 run by the Saints.

“Obviously it’s not the way anyone would want it to go,” Ridder said. “But there was a lot of good things to learn from. Both the good and the bad of the season.”

Ridder posted a 6-7 record as a starter. He completed 249 of 388 passes (64.2%) for 2,832 yards, 12 touchdowns to go with the 12 interceptions. He finished with passer rating of 83.4.

“There are a lot of things that I can go back, learn from, correct, get better at, and it is only going to help me in the long run,” Ridder said. “Things, like I said, didn’t go the way we expected it to go, this season. … But I think at the end of the day, we all learned and we all grew and we all got better.”

The offense, which averaged 334.3 yards per game and ranked 17th out of 32 teams in the NFL, never flourished consistently. The passing attack averaged 207.3 yards per game, which ranked 22nd in the league.

Ridder had his best game in a showdown with Houston’s C.J. Stroud, a 21-19 victory for the Falcons on Oct. 8. Heinicke also led the Falcons to a 29-10 victory over the Colts on Dec. 24.

“For us, trying to execute, we practiced and played with both quarterbacks,” running back Bijan Robinson said. “So, as an offense we couldn’t really get in our head who’s starting and who’s not. We were just going to come in and go with the flow. Go with it and play as best as we (could) whoever was back there. On offense, both of those guys brought us energy when we needed it.”

Ridder and Heinicke had the respect of their teammates.

“Obviously, it was a tough season on offense for all of us,” Robinson said. “I respect Des and I respect Taylor for everything that they’ve done. Even Logan (Woodside). Obviously, God has a great plan for them. For all of us. That’s what happened during the season.”

Ridder handled the situations of moving in and out of the lineup well. He was first benched in the eighth game of the season at halftime against Tennessee. Heinicke started the next two games.

After the bye week, Ridder was reinstated as the starter and went 2-2. After losses to the Bucs and Panthers, he was benched again.

“I think he handled that well,” Robinson said. “He never really got caught up in the media or with what people were saying about him or what could … it never really bothered him. I respect him a lot for that because as a man, it could be tough to see stuff like that and people may be rooting against you.”

Ridder tried to just keep playing through the ups and downs of the season.

“He (did) a really good job of staying focus,” Robinson said. “Staying (locked) in when we were facing adversity. It never really got to him. I think that’s how every player should be, quarterback or not. You want to focus on the big things for yourself and not all of the negative stuff that may come behind it.”

Heinicke was 1-3 as a starter.

“With Taylor, when things aren’t going the way it should go, he’s always calm,” Robinson said. “He’s always collected. He’s always encouraging. It’s good to see that, especially for me being a young guy.”

Offensive coordinator Dave Ragone, who played in the NFL, was the de facto quarterbacks coach. He attempted to explain what happened at the position.

“There’s a lot of factors,” Ragone said. “Not to speak for any one of those guys, but I think it goes back to when you’re playing the position, you want to make sure you’re going out there trying to execute at a high level.”

QUARTERBACKS

Starter: Desmond Ridder

Backups: Taylor Heinicke and Logan Woodside (UFA).

Falcons’ position-by-position analysis:

Part 1: Running backs

Part 2: Quarterbacks

Part 3: Wide receivers/tight ends

Part 4: Offensive line

Part 5: Defensive line

Part 6: Linebackers

Part 7: Defensive backs

Part 8: Special teams

The Bow Tie Chronicles

Credit: Miguel Martinez

Credit: Miguel Martinez

Credit: Miguel Martinez

Credit: Miguel Martinez

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC