NFL Coach & QB Rankings: Where's Falcons' Smith & Ridder?
Historically speaking, it’s nearly impossible to win a Super Bowl without having elite talent at quarterback and head coach.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder is poised to lead the youngest offensive lineup in the league. Full of exciting playmakers like Kyle Pitts, Drake London and Bijan Robinson, the average age of Atlanta's projected starting offense would be 24.9 years.
In Ridder's four starts at the end of last season, the former second-overall pick completed 63.5 percent of his passes for 708 yards, two scores and zero interceptions. In his first two starts, the Falcons scored just 27 points - which he nearly doubled in his last two, combining to hit 50 points.
Entering his third season as head coach of the Falcons, Arthur Smith is on the hunt for his first playoffs win. Smith hopes Atlanta can keep feed off a solid preseason and training camp to improve on back-to-back 7-10 seasons.
A new Sports Illustrated list ranks the Atlanta tandem low at No. 29 collectively; a combination of Smith's No. 23 ranking and Ridder at No. 31.
"Few teams are getting more hype than the Falcons as a perennial also-ran with playoff aspirations," SI writes. "Smith is much of that reason, a smart offensive coach who has playmakers on offense in receiver Drake London, tight end Kyle Pitts and running backs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier. The question is whether Ridder can do much with them. Based on four starts last season, that’s a concern."
As 3.5-point favorites vs. the Carolina Panthers, a Week 1 victory would go a long way in building confidence in Ridder and Smith. The Falcons have a chance to carry their momentum into the regular season, when they host the Panthers at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 10.
Unsurprisingly, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and coach Andy Reid topped the poll as the league's best duo, as the only combo to have won two Super Bowls together.
