On Sunday afternoon, the Atlanta Falcons dropped to a disappointing 4-6 on the 2023-24 NFL season with a crushing 25-23 road loss to the Arizona Cardinals. The Falcons started quarterback Taylor Heinicke against the Cardinals; however, Heinicke suffered an injury in the second half, forcing head coach Arthur Smith to turn to recently benched backup Desmond Ridder to close out the game.

After the game, Smith got real about what he saw out of Ridder after he was thrown into the fire of a close game against Arizona, and what it might mean for the Falcons' quarterback room going forward.

“We've got to make a decision. Des did a nice job coming back out there,” said Smith, per Scott Kennedy on YouTube. “I thought he kind of reset. I'm confident in him if he had had to come in the second play of the game. The way he prepared, he didn't flinch. He gave us a chance to win.”

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Desmond Ridder looked relatively solid in his limited amount of playing time against the Cardinals. He was only asked to throw six times, completing four of those passes for 39 yards, no touchdowns, and no interceptions. Ridder did score a touchdown using his legs to give the Falcons a late 23-22 lead over Arizona, one that evaporated as time expired and the Cardinals kicked a game-winning field goal.

The extent of Taylor Heinicke's injury is currently unclear; however, it seems that Arthur Smith has no problem going back to Ridder if needed in future weeks. The Falcons now enter a bye week.