'I Believe In His Hype': Cowboys Ex Dez Bryant Shares His Thoughts on Falcons QB Competition
Former NFL receiver Dez Bryant has seen it firsthand: the passing of the unofficial torch at quarterback from veteran to rookie.
And on Friday night, after seeing the Atlanta Falcons defeat the Detroit Lions 27-23 behind late-game preseason heroics from quarterback Desmond Ridder, he's letting his opinion be heard about who deserves to start between the third-round rookie and Marcus Mariota.
“I try to never sound bias … I love watching football," Bryant wrote on Twitter. "I respect the players who care, (by the way) I think Atlanta don’t believe in Mariota because if they did, they wouldn’t have drafted Ridder as high as they did. I believe Atlanta is looking for a franchise QB who fits their system."
For Bryant, it's simple: "Ridder is built for what Atlanta wants to do."
Bryant saw something similar in Week 3 of the 2016 preseason as the Dallas Cowboys faced the Seattle Seahawks. Dallas quarterback Tony Romo took an awkward slide that brought with it a back injury, essentially sliding fourth-round rookie Dak Prescott into the starting role.
Prescott won Offensive Rookie of the Year six months later.
Of course, those circumstances were much different than those that unfolded Friday night. Despite a lack of postseason success, Romo was a franchise cornerstone in Dallas. Prescott, though a top quarterback in college at Mississippi State, was never expected to take over at QB1 and lead the Cowboys to a 13-3 record and the No. 1 seed as a rookie.
For the Falcons, the quarterback battle headed into this season was always fixing to be a tightly contested one. Mariota, who coach Arthur Smith named the starter after the first day of training camp, certainly has NFL experience, but doesn't have the impressive résumé that would set most eight-year vets apart from a rookie.
Bryant seems to agree.
Even at 33-years-old and his NFL career unofficially at its end, he remains a student of the game. After watching Ridder pass for 103 yards and two touchdowns along with six carries for 59 yards, Bryant gave specifics on why Ridder is deserving of the hype.
"From my observations so far, I think Ridder can do everything Mariota can do and Ridder reads the field better," he wrote. "Another thing I like about Ridder … he does a great job not panicking whenever no one is open, which makes his running ability dangerous … I believe in his hype.”
The similarities between the two quarterbacks is interesting, to say the least.
Both were stars in college. Mariota won the Heisman in 2014 and led the Oregon Ducks to an appearance in the inaugural College Football Playoff the following season. Ridder, who compiled an impressive 44-7 record at Cincinnati and helped the Bearcats become the first non-Power 5 program to reach the Playoff, staked his claim as one of the most successful collegiate quarterbacks of the past decade.
The two quarterbacks are similar in dual-threat ability, height (6-4), and weight (215-222 pounds). Even stranger, they both ran a 4.52 40-yard dash at their respective NFL Combines, which was tops amongst quarterback for their class.
Now, even after a preseason win, Ridder is undoubtedly inching closer toward seeing some early-season playing time for a rebuilding Falcons team. Mariota's leash is likely short and it may not take much for Smith to insert Ridder to see what he can do.
And if that time comes, we know who Bryant will be rooting for.
