Ranking every NFL team’s quarterback situation ahead of summer offseason program

30. Atlanta Falcons
Projected Starter: Desmond Ridder

Like the Commanders, the Atlanta Falcons are trusting a mid-round pick from the 2022 NFL Draft to control its offense. The team put a ton of weapons around Desmond Ridder, with Drake London, Kyle Pitts, and a trio of talented running backs (Cordarrelle Patterson, Tyler Allgeier, and rookie Bijan Robinson) to facilitate the offense. However, has anyone seen anything out of Ridder to make them feel he can help this offense succeed?

Ridder played in four games last season, completing 62 percent of his passes. That number looks pretty good. Paired with his zero interceptions, maybe the Falcons have something here. However, Ridder took exactly zero chances last season. He averaged 6.2 yards per attempt. That has him ranked toward the bottom of the league. Also, he only had two touchdowns in four games. It’s clear the offense was built in spite of him.

Maybe with such a potent offense around him, the Falcons could create chaos without Ridder doing much. The NFC South is a tire fire, and the Falcons could win the division if just a few things go the right way.

Nobody is going to say Ridder is the answer here. Even coming out of the University of Cincinnati, he wasn’t known as a big arm. He has always been smart, and IQ can get a quarterback far, but there’s more expected out of the position today.