Falcons' Taylor Heinicke to Start vs. Colts; Desmond Ridder Benched for Final 3 Games

After a 9-7 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, the Atlanta Falcons are making a change at quarterback.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, head coach Arthur Smith confirmed Taylor Heinicke will start the final three games of the season over Desmond Ridder.

The Ridder experiment in Atlanta hasn't worked like anyone with the Falcons was hoping for when he won the starting job coming out of training camp. He's tied for 19th in yards per attempt (7.1), ranks 21st in completion percentage (63.3), tied for 24th in touchdown passes (10) and 24th in QBR (38.3).

Turnovers, especially in the red zone, have haunted Ridder all year. He has given the ball away five times inside the opponent's 20-yard line, including one in the fourth quarter against the Panthers when the Falcons were trying to extend their 7-6 lead.

The Panthers didn't give the ball back to Atlanta after Ridder's interception. They drove 90 yards over the final 7:35 of regulation to set up Eddy Pineiro's game-winning field goal. It was just the second win in 14 games for Carolina.

Atlanta's loss dropped its record to 6-8 overall, one game behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints in the NFC South race.

The Falcons have been as erratic as any team in the NFL this season. They have either won at least two straight games or lost at least two straight games four different times, including their current two-game losing skid.

This will be the second time Ridder has been benched for Heinicke. He was previously replaced after the Falcons' loss to the Tennessee Titans in Week 8. Heinicke lost both of his starts, throwing for 323 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

Smith is just looking for some spark at this point in the season. Heinicke may not be a great answer, but nothing Ridder has shown suggests he's capable of elevating the offense to a respectable level.