The Atlanta Falcons have dealt with quarterback problems for years. Even last year, they handed Kirk Cousins a monster deal, and less than one year later, he's on the bench and Michael Penix Jr. is slated to be the starter going forward.
Before these additions, the Falcons had Desmond Ridder under center for two seasons. Atlanta drafted him in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft but traded him to the Arizona Cardinals. He didn't last there and ended up getting released.
He signed with the Las Vegas Raiders and played in six games before getting kicked to the curb. He's been on the open market since and got one more shot to stick onto an NFL roster ahead of the 2025 season. According to Mike Klis of 9News, Ridder will throw at the Denver Broncos minicamp. The Broncos have Bo Nix as the starter with Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger behind him.
Ridder will get a chance to impress the coaching staff and potentially get a training camp invite.
Desmond Ridder to throw at the Broncos’ rookie minicamp. https://t.co/iXFQXnTquH
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) May 6, 2025
Desmond Ridder Will Throw at Broncos Minicamp
Denver's rookie minicamp runs from May 9 to May 11. He certainly faces an uphill climb to make the team. He hasn't shown enough to make the team comfortable signing him onto the 53-man roster.
In 19 games (17 starts) in Atlanta, he went 322-of-503 (64%) for 3,544 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. Ridder also went 8-9 as a starter and was inconsistent throughout. It's clear it wasn't an Atlanta problem since he couldn't still around with the Cardinals or Raiders.
Whether or not things will change for the Cincinnati product remains to be seen but history isn't on his side right now.
Quarterbacks usually get more opportunities to make the team, and you can see that with Ridder. It's up to him to make the best of the situation if otherwise, he could be out of the league soon.