The Falcons have turned back to Desmond Ridder after a brief stint with Taylor Heinicke as the starter, but the results haven’t changed.
Ridder made several big plays with his feet and arm on third downs to extend drives that ended in points. However, as there’s always been, Ridder committed a couple of turnovers, including another one in the redzone.
Now, some of it might fall on Bijan Robinson’s shoulders, but the fact is he’s committed an unsustainable amount of turnovers that nobody, including the Falcons, should overlook.
There would have to be some unprecedented improvement from a third round pick over the course of the final six games for me not to think the club should pursue a quarterback this offseason.
Trading up for one of Caleb Williams or Drake Maye, potentially landing Jayden Daniels at their current slot, or even exploring the trade market for an incumbent signal caller on a team that targets one of the aforementioned prospects could be an option — i.e., Kyler Murray or Justin Fields.
In the latest mock draft from CBS, the Falcons do the former, trading up with the Bears to land their franchise quarterback in Drake Maye. Below are the trade details and what Chris Trapasso had to say about the selection.
Falcons get:Â No. 4 overall, No. 105 overall (fourth round)
Bears get:Â No. 8 overall, No. 45 overall (second round), No. 68 overall (third round)
The Falcons can’t wait around and hope Desmond Ridder develops. So they get aggressive to land the promising Maye from North Carolina. Chicago decides against picking a quarterback, instead taking the extra picks to continue to build around Justin Fields.
A second-round and third-round pick in exchange for the opportunity to land a potential franchise quarterback is absolutely chump change. I would do this deal in a heartbeat, every single day of the week.
The Falcons would be fools not to explore every avenue to upgrade the position because Desmond Ridder is holding this star-studded offense back. Somehow, he’s made Kyle Pitts and Drake London an afterthought in national discussions about the top pass catchers in the league.
Ridder could potentially develop into a serviceable quarterback, but the Falcons shouldn’t be in wait-and-see mode. That’s for suckers.
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Photo: John Byrum/Icon Sportswire
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