Atlanta Falcons Draft Explosive Receiver Calvin Ridley
By Kit Anderson
The Atlanta Falcons made the perfect draft decision drafting Calvin Ridley. Ridley is explosive and will perfectly complement the current Falcon’s offensive scheme.
Calvin Ridley will be playing alongside fellow Alabama alum Julio Jones joining the Atlanta Falcon’s offense. Ridley is a great addition but has plenty to learn.
He a receiver best utilized for the Falcons in the slot using his speed to get open. The one concern for Ridley has to be the fact that he hasn’t proven he can make contested catches consistently. There is more upside to Ridley, however, and he can trust he will never see a double team with Julio Jones healthy.
Paired with Devonta Freeman, Mo Sanu, Julio Jones, and Austin Hooper it will be a complete offense. Ridley will be replacing Taylor Gabriel and is more than capable of filling the role that Gabriel held last season.
He has more pure talent than Gabriel and is perfectly paired with Julio Jones, who will no doubt, invest in the young receiver.
Watching Ridley receive the news he had been drafted by the Falcons was moving. Ridley was emotional and obviously excited to join the Falcon’s roster.
His ties to Georgia were in place already with the aforementioned Julio Jones and his brother (Riley Ridley) playing at UGA. His former offensive coordinator (Steve Sarkisian) is the current Falcon’s coordinator, though we won’t venture further down that rabbit hole.
Calvin Ridley was the best receiver fit in the draft for Atlanta, and outside of having a shot at one of the top DT’s was their best pick. Passing on Lamar Jackson was the only notable player the Falcons missed on.
Matt Ryan is heading into his contract year and having a capable rookie back-up would be understandable. But, Ryan likely has 5-6 years of quality football left and Jackson wouldn’t have been more than a trade chip. Jackson was later drafted by the Ravens to end the first night of the draft.
Ridley will help open up the passing offense, an attack that struggled at times in 2017. He will require defensive attention or he will take the top off and break plays down the field.
Making Julio Jones’ and Sanu’s lives easier and will help bring the Falcon’s explosive offense back.
Ridley was the perfect pick for the Falcons, a pick who will have an instant impact in 2018. With plenty of needs left to fill on the roster, all eyes will now be on day two of the draft. Round two will kick off a 7:00 pm EST on Friday night. A night promising more entertainment for the football-starved fans of Atlanta.