FLOWERY BRANCH -- The Falcons are content with rookie Desmond Ridder’s progress in practice this week after he was named the starter for the rest of the season.
Coach Arthur Smith said the coaching staff has worked with him as much as they can ahead of the Falcons’ Week 15 matchup against the Saints at 1 p.m. Sunday.
“It’s like a lot of things in life: You control what you can control,” Smith said of Ridder’s adjustment to the reps with the first team. “He hasn’t been out there (in terms of live reps) since the (exhibition games), but there’s things we try to simulate. There’s gonna be a little bit unknown, but we’ve done everything we can possible imagine to prepare him. Now, we gotta go out and do it on Sunday.”
Nevertheless, Smith said he and the rest of the team are excited to see what Ridder can do in a key game related to the Falcons’ hopes for a late-season playoff push.
With Ridder taking over behind center for the Falcons after 13 games, there was reasonable expectation from some for the Falcons to wave the white flag on their season.
But that isn’t the case.
Rather, they’re hoping Ridder can lead them to the top of the NFC South and secure a spot in the playoffs down the stretch.
Smith has been preparing him for a moment like this all season.
“He brought me in and sat me down and told me that we were making the change,” Ridder said Wednesday. “He said that I’m prepared for this, this is what they’ve been preparing me for. They didn’t want to baby me and give me all the little tips and tricks. It’s just been exciting to have this whole process come around and be in this situation.”
The Falcons didn’t practice with Ridder as if he were a rookie quarterback. They took the training wheels off quickly and placed him in a position to learn with haste. That is one reason why Smith has such confidence in Ridder as the starter going forward. He was never “spoon-fed” in his progression.
“That means going about the game plan like how a 12-year vet or an eight-year vet, whatever it may be, goes about it,” Ridder said of the coaches’ training plan for him. “Not putting on a wristband and making me memorize every single play-call and all the ins and outs, all the checks and just taking it as if I’ve been in the league for eight years. I’ve been in the league for six months, but it’s been exciting to just be able to learn and be able to grow.”
The passing attack for the Falcons hasn’t been prolific this season, ranking second-worst in the NFL, but the Falcons are hoping they can block out all the noise and execute down the stretch of the season with Ridder as the starter.
“We feel good (about Ridder’s progress at QB),” receiver Olamide Zaccheaus said. “He’s been preparing this whole time. He’s a confident person, confident player. So, we just want to make the transition as easy as possible for him. It’s gonna be the first big moment for him.”
Much of the production from Ridder will be contingent on the Falcons’ offensive play, but offensive lineman Matt Hennessy said the transition to starter for Ridder has been “seamless.”
Much of the Falcons’ confidence in Ridder has stemmed from him stepping up as a leader early after being named the starter. He also was able to grow more comfortable with the team through him taking initiative.
“I know during the bye week some guys like to get out of here. I found out the news, so I was like, ‘Hey, we got to get to it as quick as we can,’” Ridder said. “A couple of guys were able to come back who were still in town. So, we just came in and threw and just kind of – those are the connections that a lot of people make in the offseason, but sometimes it happens and changes in the middle of the season and you got to roll with it, and that’s what we did.”
Bob Andres
Bob Andres
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