Atlanta Falcons QB Desmond Ridder Preparing For 'Smart, Instinctual' Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defense

Desmond Ridder knows that he will have to be on his A-game when the Atlanta Falcons face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Atlanta Falcons will look to jump back into the win column on Sunday when they face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but quarterback Desmond Ridder faces a challenge in the Tampa defense.

Ridder recently spoke with the media where he praised multiple athletes on that side of the football for the Bucs, including linebackers Lavonte David and Devin White.

“Obviously, those two guys have played a lot of good football and they kind of feed off one another," Ridder said. "They’re fast, they’re physical, they’re bigger guys, they’re able to cover and get hands-on when they do get in man [coverage]. They come up and they fill the run. 

"They’re also smart, instinctual players. When they see play action, they drop back and get their eyes back to the quarterbacks and fill their holes. It’ll be a great battle for our tight ends, for our interior, and for our running backs.”

Oct 15, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder (9) throws a pass against the Washington Commanders in the first quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports / © Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

The Bucs secondary is no laughing matter, either, featuring two strong safeties on Antnoine Winfield Jr. and Ryan Neal. For a quarterback who has had some interception struggles early this season, knowing where these two are at all times will be paramount to Ridder's success or failure on Sunday.

“He’s [Winfield Jr.] an instinctual guy who is going to play kind of that deep field, have eyes on the quarterback, playing that centerfield like they say in baseball, and they’re just ballhawks," Ridder said. "At the corner position with [Carlton] Davis and [Jamel] Dean, they’re going to be physical at the line of scrimmage, getting hands-on, trying to get you off your routes. They know they’re going to bring pressure so they’re expecting the ball to get out.”

The Falcons and Buccaneers are scheduled to kick off at 1 p.m. on Sunday, and the game will be televised on FOX.