Falcons 'Plan' to Start Desmond Ridder at QB amid Lamar Jackson Rumors, HC Says
March 28, 2023
Desmond Ridder will begin the 2023 season as the starting quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons, head coach Arthur Smith told reporters Tuesday.
"The plan is to start Desmond," Smith said. "That's our plan going forward right now."
The news comes amid speculation that Atlanta could be a destination for Lamar Jackson, who revealed Monday that he requested a trade from the Baltimore Ravens on March 2 amid negotiations for a new contract.
"As of March 2nd I requested a trade from the Ravens organization for which the Ravens has not been interested in meeting my value, any and everyone that's has met me or been around me know I love the game of football and my dream is to help a team win the super bowl," Jackson wrote.
Smith previously expressed his confidence in Ridder during an interview with NFL Network's Steve Wyche on Sunday.
"When we drafted Desmond, he sat behind Marcus, and certainly, we thought going into Week 1, if he was ready to go and he played better than Marcus, we would've played him," Smith said. "But it allowed us to bring him along. We didn't feel like we had to rush him."
The Falcons selected Ridder in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft out of Cincinnati. He started four games last season after starting signal-caller Marcus Mariota left the team to deal with a knee injury.
In those four games, Ridder completed 63.5 percent of his passes for 708 yards and two touchdowns, in addition to rushing for 64 yards. He led the Falcons to a 2-2 record in that span.
The Falcons released Mariota in February and agreed to terms with Taylor Heinicke to add as a veteran presence alongside Ridder in 2023.
There's no denying Jackson would be an upgrade over Ridder and Heinicke. The 2019 MVP is arguably the league's best runner among quarterbacks and has shown signs of improvement as a passer.
In 2022, he completed 62.3 percent of his passes for 2,242 yards and 17 touchdowns against seven interceptions in 12 games before being sidelined by a knee injury.
However, Jackson's price tag is likely to be high, and it wouldn't be surprising if the Falcons are unwilling to meet Baltimore's asking price, especially given the confidence in Ridder.
Additionally, Jackson has been linked to several other teams this offseason, including the New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans, so there's no telling how a bidding war for his services could go.