Falcons' Drake London: Desmond Ridder Will 'Silence' Doubters, Shut People Up

The Atlanta Falcons have been chastised for not bringing in another quarterback to challenge Desmond Ridder for the starting job, but wide receiver Drake London believes the second-year signal-caller will "silence" the doubters.

"He only had four games last year," London said, per Joe Patrick of 92.9 The Game. "People didn't really see all of Dez... Now they get to see him and get see what he does, so I think he'll shut a lot of people up and silence those doubters for sure."

The Falcons selected Ridder in the third round of the 2022 draft out of Cincinnati. He sat behind Marcus Mariota for much of the 2022 campaign before being elevated to QB1 for the final four games of the year.

Atlanta went 2-2 in Ridder's four starts. He completed 63.5 percent of his passes for 708 yards and two touchdowns, in addition to rushing for 64 yards. While it was a small sample size, it was clearly enough for the Falcons to commit to him as their starter in 2023.

Ridder enters 2022 atop the depth chart in front of Taylor Heinicke and Logan Woodside, and he'll get his first chance to silence the doubters on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers in front of his home crowd at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

"I feel like I have to prove myself to myself," Ridder said, per Terrin Waack of the team's website. "I know what I can do, both mentally and physically. Now, I have to go do it."

Ridder will have no shortage of targets in 2023 with London, Kyle Pitts, Mack Hollins and KhaDarel Hodge leading the way. The addition of rookie running back Bijan Robinson should also help ease the pressure on offense.

London led the Falcons with 866 receiving yards last season, and he and Pitts figure to have an even bigger role in Atlanta this year.

Atlanta is hoping to make the playoffs for the first time since the 2017 campaign.