Falcons-Lions OFFENSE Snap Counts: How Much Did Desmond Ridder Play?
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder shined in his preseason debut against the Detroit Lions last week, leading the team to a 27-23 win.
But outside of Ridder, many offensive players deserve some type of credit for the win and nearly every offensive player on the team from top to bottom saw opportunities to contribute.
One of the most telling ways to evaluate the status of players on the roster bubble is by analyzing snap counts. These values provide insight into the standings of players, with second- and third-team players generally getting more time to prove themselves in a game setting than starters.
All the offensive players in terms of snap count were as such:
With no surprise, rookie quarterback Desmond Ridder had the highest number of snaps of any player on offense by a fair margin. Past starting quarterback Marcus Mariota's initial 13 snaps, Ridder was left in charge of an offense that was able to surge for an electric last-minute win.
In addition, the backup offensive line seems fairly set, with left tackle Rick Leonard, left guard Jalen Mayfield, center Drew Dalman, right guard Colby Gossett, and right tackle Germain Ifedi taking 28 snaps each as a cohesive second-team unit.
Despite being listed as the No. 8 running back on the depth chart, rookie Tyler Allgeier also received a decently high number of snaps at 18. With reports emerging through camp that Allgeier seemed primed to take over the starting role, this uptick in snaps could simply be to help the rookie further acclimate to NFL-level speed.
The Falcons are set to play their next preseason game Monday at 8 p.m. against the New York Jets on ESPN.
