After benching veteran quarterback Marcus Mariota at the end of last season, the Atlanta Falcons will be moving forward with second-year quarterback Desmond Ridder this season. And even though he is young, it sounds like his teammates are ready to follow him.
During a recent interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Grady Jarrett had one word to describe his new quarterback: “confident.”
“[I]t just seems like the noise around him just hasn’t affected him — just the negative energy that people are giving toward the decision that the team has made to go with him,” Jarrett said according to Pro Football Talk. “He’s just so confident in the things that he’s going to be able to do. And we’re confident in him, the things we know he can achieve because he’s shown the work day in and day out. That’s how you want your quarterback, your leader to be — unscathed, a guy that’s just locked in.
“So, I mean, confidence is a great word because he’s going to have the swagger, the talent, and everything to match. So I’d definitely say he’s confident.”
It will be interesting to see how Ridder performs with the Falcons this season and whether or not he can prove that he should be the team’s quarterback of the future.
