Atlanta Falcons Coach Arthur Smith Talks QB Desmond Ridder: 'Lot of Things are Expanding'

“I think you can’t deny the fact that the passing game has gotten a lot better,” Atlanta Falcons coach Arthur Smith said while discussing the growth of quarterback Desmond Ridder.

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder's Sunday afternoon inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium can be succinctly summed up by the first response in his postgame press conference.

When asked to explain what happened on an interception, Ridder responded with, "Which one?"

It was that type of day for Ridder, who tossed three interceptions in Atlanta's 24-16 loss to the Washington Commanders, giving the 24-year-old his first home defeat in almost eight years.

There were positives, however, as Ridder threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns just a week after passing for 329 yards in a win over the Houston Texans. It's the first time Atlanta's had back-to-back 300-yard passing games since Matt Ryan in games five and six of 2021.

Still, the focus goes to Ridder's ball security; it's not just that he threw three interceptions, it's the timing, too. All of them came in the second half. Two came in the fourth quarter, one in the endzone and the other on the final drive.

Ridder, making his tenth start, matched his total number of career interceptions against Washington. He leads the league in turnover-worthy throws with 15.

But Falcons coach Arthur Smith has seen Ridder take strides, and while he's not excusing the mistakes that happened Sunday, continues to be optimistic about where the second-year passer's development is trending.

“I think you have to acknowledge those are things that happened, right? You break it down,” Smith said. “What happened, happened, but if you look at it, macro or big picture, there are a lot of things that are expanding.”

For comparison, during the season's first four weeks, Ridder completed 74 of 119 passes (62.2 percent) for 744 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions while taking 16 sacks.

Over the last two weeks alone, Ridder's gone 56 of 84 (66.7 percent) for 636 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions while being sacked three times.

It's not just the numbers that have impressed Smith - it's the quality of throws that Ridder's made, which have helped the offense post 400 yards in consecutive games ... but the turnovers simply can't continue for the Falcons to reach the postseason for the first time in six years.

“He’s making some big-time throws and guys are doing a good job of getting open,” Smith said. “That should benefit us, but the critical errors – when you go minus three in the turnovers, it’s going to get you beat more times than not.”

Smith noted each of Ridder's interceptions have been different, which is a stark contrast from someone making the same mistake time and again. As such, Smith isn't discouraged, but instead focused on eliminating the errors.

Better yet, Smith is confident Ridder will keep growing and put his mistakes in the past - after all, that type of mentality has shown up time and again inside the locker room since the Falcons turned the reigns over to Ridder in Week 15 last year.

Atlanta's learned a lot about Ridder in the past year and a half, perhaps the most prominent being that he's mentally equipped to not just get over the interceptions but improve as a result of the additional adversity.

“He’s a very tough-minded guy,” Smith said. “He’s a real person. I think what’s endearing about him is he’s very honest. He’s got a lot of courage. I think that’s a big part. It’s easy to stand up here when everything’s going well ... but your job as a head coach, play-caller, quarterback in this league is to stand in there and be accountable.

“It’s not all on him, but he’s one of the more accountable people I’ve coached ... It’s refreshing to coach a guy like Des because he is honest, aware, and coachable, as we all try to be.”

For better or worse, coach Arthur Smith and quarterback Desmond Ridder are the driving forces behind the Atlanta Falcons' offense / ClutchPoints

Smith acknowledged you can call the recent turnover trouble - six in the past three games - as growing pains, but reiterated the passing offense continues to expand.

The Falcons entered this year with a stated goal of trying to be more balanced after leading the league in rush attempts per game last season, and Ridder's past two games have inspired hope of meeting that goal.

Part of the equation is that Atlanta hasn't incorporated as many designed rushing attempts for Ridder as it did with Marcus Mariota last year.

Smith was quick to point out that Ridder scored rushing touchdowns against the Texans and Green Bay Packers but remains adamant that this year's version of the Falcons offense isn't going to follow in the footsteps of the Mariota-led plan of attack.

“It’s an element you have, we’re just at a different point,” Smith said of Ridder's rushing ability. “We’ve got different skill guys, and we’re just built a little bit differently, and we’ve tried to evolve. Feel like we’ve got some good weapons in the passing game, along with in the rushing attacks. That’s why you want to be more balanced.”

The Falcons sit at 3-3 entering Sunday's road game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. With a win, Atlanta will take the lead of the NFC South after seven weeks, right where it expected to be all along.

And really, perhaps nothing better illustrates where the Falcons are than that - despite several plays, quarters or even games they may want back, everything they set out to accomplish remains in sight.

For Smith, that doesn't just mean team goals. It's about getting the offense to play to his standard each week, and with Ridder's "refreshing" off-field mindset and evolving on-field skill set, the unit is getting closer and closer by the day.

“This young core of skill guys we’re continuing to evolve and be more balanced, which we think will certainly help us in the long run,” Smith said. “We’ve got to eliminate some of these critical errors, but I think you can’t deny the fact that the passing game has gotten a lot better.”

The Falcons - with Ridder seeking his third straight 300-yard passing game - will kick off at 1 p.m. EST Sunday in Tampa Bay.