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After 14 years of Matt Ryan leading the pack, the Falcons will are set to name a new face of Atlanta ahead of Week 1 of the 2022 season.
Will that be Marcus Mariota, whom the Falcons picked up in free agency after sending Ryan to Indianapolis?
According to NFL analyst, Chris Simms, it can be.
“He’s big (size is a skill), can run, with a pretty good arm,” Simms wrote in his Top 40 QB Twitter thread. I wish he wasn’t so robotic, his improvisation does not match his athleticism.
He has starting QB qualities, and I bet he has a long leash as the Falcons starter this season.”
Simms began his annual top-40 quarterbacks ranking and listed the former Heisman Trophy winner at No. 28.
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Atlanta Plans to Roll with Mariota at QB1
Until rookie QB Desmond Ridder is NFL ready, the Falcons expect Mariota to lead the way while the rookie soaks up all that he can as a backup.
“We’ve added competition certainly,” Smith said, per The Athletic. “Marcus being the veteran gives us a chance going forward. As with any position on this team, the best player is going to play, but obviously, Marcus being the vet, that’s the way it’ll go starting out.”
Of course, things can change between now and the regular season, but it’s all up to Ridder on how well he performs and competes in training camp.
“I’m not going to sit here and speculate or give you our plan of development,” Smith said. “We’ll see what (Ridder) looks like when he gets here. If you’re asking if we’re going to put a package in for him, we’ll see. We’ve got a long way to go until September.
I’m not going to tell you our long-term plan or short-term plan. We know what we want to see behind the scenes. It’ll play itself out. You guys will be able to watch it.”
Mariota Faces a Lot of Pressure
Any NFL player will tell you that the transition from the college level to the next level isn’t easy. Ridder will have to spend most of his time learning a brand new playbook in order to build trust with his teammates and coaches. Not to mention that the Falcons’ schedule this season is a tough one for any rookie considering the team faces Tom Brady twice along with the Super Bowl champs and runner-up. Thus, Ridder will have to try 10 times harder than Mariota to win the job.
As for Mariota, keeping the starting job won’t come easy for him either. The 28-year-old spent the last two years as a backup quarterback where he appeared in 11 games, 10 of them coming last season. He went 18-of-30 passing (60%) for 230 yards and a touchdown with one interception and added 175 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
There’s going to be a lot of pressure on Mariota to step it up as the expected starter for the Falcons in 2022 and if he doesn’t, then he’ll be back to being QB No.2.
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