Raiders Draft Prospects: Desmond Ridder
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The Las Vegas Raiders have experience in turning quarterbacks from the Group of 5 in college football into legitimate starters, with quarterback Derek Carr coming from Fresno State.
There's another quarterback coming from the Group of 5 that could be a high pick in this year's NFL Draft in Desmond Ridder of the Cincinnati Bearcats.
The two-time AAC Offensive Player of the Year has racked up a number of accolades while with the Bearcats, including leading the team to the College Football Playoff this past season.
Ridder is coming off recording career highs in passing yards, touchdowns, and yards per attempt with 3,334, 30, and 8.6, respectively.
Ridder also has the record for most career total touchdowns in AAC history with 116.
He has one of the best arms in the draft, with the ability to put the football anywhere on the field.
Ridder has great athletic upside at 6-4 and 215 pounds, and showed off his mobility often with 2,180 career rushing yards and 28 touchdowns.
Where the criticisms often come with Ridder is his consistency in the pocket, where while he's hasn't performed badly, scouts have noted several issues.
While he's competed 64.9 percent or better of his passes the last two seasons, Ridder isn't always able to put the ball in the best positions for his receivers.
Ridder can also try to do too much, putting the ball in harm's way, which in the NFL will lead more consistently to turnovers.
With the work needed on his mechanics, Ridder might be more of a project quarterback to start out in the NFL.
If Ridder is taken by a team that can give him time to develop and incorporate an offense suited to his athletic talents, he could eventually find a path as a viable starter.
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