Falcons bench Ridder, announce Heinicke as starter against Vikings

Published 4:00 pm Wednesday, November 1, 2023

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — Taylor Heinicke has moved past turnover-plagued Desmond Ridder as the Atlanta Falcons’ starting quarterback for Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings.

Coach Arthur Smith said Wednesday the decision to start Heinicke was made “with all the variables considering everything.” Smith would not commit to Heinicke keeping the job past Sunday.

“Really our focus is short term and what gives us the best chance for Sunday,” he said.

The move comes with the Falcons (4-4) tied with New Orleans for first place in the NFC South.

Heinicke took over in the second half of last week’s 28-23 loss at Tennessee. At the time, Smith insisted that benching Ridder was not a performance-based move. Ridder was evaluated for a concussion and the second-year quarterback remained on the sideline after being cleared.

Smith said Wednesday that Ridder is “clear and available” and will be Heinicke’s top backup against the Vikings.

When asked if Heinicke could win the job for more than one week by playing well against Minnesota, Smith said, “right now we’re focused on Minnesota.”

Ridder continued to be plagued by turnovers and the offense struggled in the first half against Tennessee. He was sacked five times and lost another fumble — his 10th turnover in the past five games — against the Titans. The Falcons managed only 89 total yards, 35 net passing yards and five first downs in the first half with Ridder.

Heinicke led the Falcons on four scoring drives — two touchdowns and two field goals — while completing 12 of 21 passes for 171 yards.

“A lot of things we had seen in Taylor that we saw on Sunday,” Smith said, referring to Heinicke’s “unique ability to extend plays.”

“This isn’t his first rodeo,” Smith said.

Following Sunday’s game, Heinicke indicated he did not expect to be named the starter.

“This is Desmond’s team,” Heinicke said. “Obviously there were a couple of hiccups here and there, but he’s progressing every week.”

The announcement Wednesday proved the Falcons’ commitment to Ridder has changed, possibly for more than one week.

“Lot of positive qualities in Taylor,” Smith said. “He’s been a great fit here and that’s why we brought him in here.”

Ridder, a third-round draft pick from Cincinnati in 2022, has completed 65.4% of his passes, going 157 of 240 for 1,701 yards with six touchdowns and six interceptions.

Heinicke, 30, signed a $20 million, two-year deal with the Falcons on March 14. It was a homecoming for Heinicke, who was born in Lawrenceville and played at Collins Hills High School in the Atlanta suburbs. He started 24 games the last two seasons with Washington.

Heinicke has experience taking over a starting job during a season. He started the 2020 season on Washington’s practice squad before being promoted to the active roster in late December and starting in the wild-card round of the playoffs, a loss to eventual Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay, after Alex Smith was ruled out with an injury.

In 2021, Heinicke began the season as a backup for Washington. He took over the top spot again after an injury to Ryan Fitzpatrick. Heinicke made nine starts, passing for 1,859 yards with 12 touchdowns and six interceptions.

For his career, Heinicke has completed 63.7% of his passes, with 35 touchdowns and 24 interceptions in 34 games, including 25 starts.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL