The Atlanta Falcons have a decision to make as they head into their bye following a 25-23 loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 10. Just two weeks after benching then-starting quarterback and second-year pro Desmond Ridder for veteran Taylor Heinicke- who suffered an injury on Sunday- Falcons head coach Arthur Smith on Monday was asked if it would be premature to name a starting QB right now, per Terrin Waack of the team's website.
Arthur Smith mum on Falcons' starting QB
“On the bye week, so take some time, step back and look at everything. Yeah a little premature. I mean, obviously, both of those guys have done some good things and some of the things we have to assess.”
Smith is not ready to name a starting QB with the Falcons heading into a bye, telling reporters there are things the team needs to “assess.”
One of those things will be Heinicke's performance in the QB1 role, as the veteran has thrown for 443 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in two starts, both games lost by the Atlanta defense in the contest's final seconds. Another one of those things will be Heinicke's injury.
Heinicke has ‘low grade' hamstring injury
Smith said that Heinicke has a “low grade” hamstring injury. The Falcons QB suffered the injury while scrambling on an eight-yard run in the fourth quarter. He immediately grabbed his leg and stayed down before he was removed from the contest and replaced by Ridder.
The Falcons' bye week certainly came at the right time for Heinicke, who will get the extra time to recover from the injury, though it's still unclear if the issue will sideline him for any games. If it does, Ridder will step back into the starting role.
Desmond Ridder's struggles
Ridder, who began the year as the Falcons' starter, threw for 1,740 yards, six touchdowns and six interceptions along with seven fumbles.
The turnovers were an issue for the second year QB, especially in October games against the Jacksonville Jaguars and Washington Commanders, whom he tossed two and three interceptions against, respectively.
Smith didn't bench Ridder after either of those games, but finally saw enough during his team's Week 8 loss to the Tennessee Titans, when he pulled Ridder in the first half.
The question now is- assuming Heinicke is healthy- has Smith seen enough from the veteran to turn back to Ridder?