QB Draft Mistakes: Falcons GM Terry Fontenot Reveals What Goes Wrong
In the midst of the NFL Draft season, many people are left wondering ... What leads to teams missing on quarterback selections in the draft?
Atlanta Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot shared his perspective on what goes wrong with some quarterbacks after entering the league.
"They all have good skill sets, but once they get in the NFL, there's a lot of other external pressures and a lot of things these young men have to deal with," Fontenot said. "So, will they be able to handle that and get the most of themselves on the field? They're going to deal with adversity; how are they going to handle that? And so I think it's you have to hit on the makeup and make sure you're bringing in the right types of individuals with the right intention."
Since being promoted to the Falcons' general manager role in 2021, Desmond Ridder is the lone quarterback that Fontenot has drafted, though the team just released Marcus Mariota, the Tennessee Titans' No. 2 overall draft selection back in 2015.
In Ridder's rookie season, he started four games for Atlanta, in which the team went 2-2. During that time, he completed 63.5 percent of his passes for 708 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions while posting an average quarterback rating of 99.2 in the two games he won to close out the regular season.
The Falcons will be entering this year's draft with the No. 8 overall pick, and it will be interesting to see if Fontenot was impressed enough with Ridders performance rookie season performance to stick with the third-round selection heading into next season.
You can follow Isaiah DeAnda Delgado on Twitter and Instagram @IsaiahDDelgado.
Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Falcons? Click Here.
Follow Falcon Report on Twitter.
Want even more Atlanta Falcons news? Check out the SI.com team page here.
