Jaguars vs. Falcons: Can Calvin Ridley Get Back on Track Against Former Team?
Wide receiver Calvin Ridley quickly made a name for himself in Jacksonville.
A 9-yard touchdown to give the Jaguars the early lead in week one made him a household name among Duval faithful, leaving fans with sky-high expectations for the former Atlanta Falcon. His final stat line of eight catches for 101 yards only added fuel to the fire.
In two contests since, Ridley has secured just five catches for 72 yards.
“...We feel like through three games, we haven’t done the things we’ve felt like we would be able to do in certain games,” said Jaguars offensive coordinator Press Taylor. “Whether that be setting guys up for certain things, finishing plays, executing plays. We haven’t achieved the standard we expect for ourselves.”
Through three games the Jaguars offense averages 339 yards per game while third-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence is averaging the most passing yards per game of his career with 245.3. The Jaguars sport the league’s 9th-best passing offense and 16th overall.
Their success on the stat sheet hasn’t translated, however; the Jaguars find themselves at 1-2 ahead of a meeting with the Atlanta Falcons in London. While it’s not quite Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Ridley will still have the opportunity to dominate against his former team.
The question is, will he? Across his five NFL seasons, the Alabama product averages nearly 225 receiving yards and two touchdowns through a season’s first three games. As the primary option in the Jaguars' prolific passing offense, Ridley has just 173 yards and a score; the worst statistical start of his professional career.
Through three contests Ridley has been targeted about as much as he usually would; he’s garnered 23 looks this season, slightly below his 24-target average anda far cry from his career-best 35-target start in 2020. At the catch-point is where he has seemingly taken a slight step back.
By week four Ridley had caught 11 passes as a rookie, 13 in his second season, and cleared 20 in each of the next two seasons prior to stepping away from football to focus on his mental health. On average, Ridley caught 71.9% of the passes thrown his way by week four.
This season he has again reached the 13-catch mark, but is only securing 50% of his targets. With the NFL average hovering around 65%, many had grander expectations for the sixth-year veteran.
Regardless of how disappointing his start to the 2023 campaign may seem, the biggest disparity from his dominant seasons in Atlanta is volume. Despite a disappointing start to his tenure as a Jaguar, OC Press Taylor remains confident the Ridley can, and will, return to form.
“I feel like he’s a guy that just continues to put his head down and continues to work,” said Taylor. “I think a couple of those plays that maybe he didn’t come up with, he’ll get an opportunity to come up pretty quickly. That’ll turn the tide for a lot of that, maybe change the narrative.”
With a golden opportunity to shine against his former team, Ridley will have to shake off whatever rust–and jetlag–remains, and fast. The Jaguars kickoff against the Atlanta Falcons in London at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday; expect a lot of fans in teal and black, and a whole lot more of Ridley.
