<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/chargers-news-taylor-heinicke-learns-trade-watching-michigan-documentary');   ga('set', 'title', 'Chargers’ Taylor Heinicke learns of trade while watching Michigan documentary');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Chargers-news-Taylor-Heinicke-learns-of-trade-while-watching-Michigan-documentary.jpg"></figure><h1>Chargers’ Taylor Heinicke learns of trade while watching Michigan documentary</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-09-03T00:56:50-07:00">September 3rd, 12:56am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-09-03T00:56:50-07:00">September 3rd, 12:56am</time><address><a>Michael Aaron Gomez</a>Michael Aaron Gomez is a creative writer and longtime NBA fan. He has been a fan of the Lakers since the three-peat but believes LeBron James is the greatest player of all time.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Ahead of Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/chargers-news-la-trades-for-29-game-starter-add-qb-depth-behind-justin-herbert">Los Angeles Chargers traded for Taylor Heinicke</a> from the Atlanta Falcons. The new backup quarterback should provide a big boost to their QB depth behind Justin Herbert, as they try to win while keeping their QB1 healthy. The veteran Heinicke’s arrival should also provide a veteran presence and guidance to Easton Stick, the team’s other quarterback. While the Chargers’ new acquisition settles in, he also recalled how he found out that the Falcons were dealing him.</p><p>Apparently Falcons coach Raheem Morris called Heinicke up to tell him about the Chargers deal while he was watching a Michigan sign-stealing documentary.</p><p>“I was like, ‘Oh, that’s funny. I was just watching Jim Harbaugh,'” the quarterback said, as <a href="https://x.com/krisrhim1/status/1830762680166293980" rel="noopener">reported</a> by Kris Rhim on X, formerly Twitter.</p><h2><b>Chargers outlook</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Taylor-Heinicke-throwing-a-pass.jpg"><figcaption>© Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Prior to the Chargers deal, Taylor Heinicke played for the Washington Commanders and the Atlanta Falcons. However, <a href="https://www.essentiallysports.com/nfl-active-news-i-was-just-watching-jim-harbaugh-taylor-heinickes-hilarious-story-about-the-chargers-trade/" rel="noopener">his best stint</a> was with the Commanders in 2021, where he started 15 games and passed for 3,419 yards and scored 20 touchdowns. Recently, he has also started 13 out of his last 14 games, covering the past two seasons.</p><p>His production must have impressed Jim Harbaugh enough to want to trade for him, particularly as Justin Herbert’s injury history remains a nagging thorn in their side. For instance, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/chargers-news-justin-herbert-returns-practice-after-injury-layoff">Herbert had only recently returned to practice</a> since a plantar fascia injury to his right foot on August 1. Thankfully, the star quarterback seems to be available for their Week 1 opener against the Las Vegas Raiders.</p><p>Speaking about his new backup QB, Harbaugh was positive.</p><p>“I like him and his body of work,” the former Michigan coach said. “When he quarterbacks a team, they are competitive. He throws with good accuracy and plays his game.”</p><p>Moreover, Heinicke himself seems to have the right attitude coming into his fifth team in seven seasons.</p><p>“Justin has the arm talent that Easton [Stick] and I don’t have and that’s just the truth of the matter,” he said. “So, if we were to go out there and try to be like him, I don’t think that’s our best football. I like that they’ve noticed that and that we just have to go out there and play our best game.”</p><h2><b>Other moves</b></h2><p>Prior to the Heinicke trade with the Falcons, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/chargers-news-los-angeles-reunites-jim-harbaugh-former-michigan-rb-after-titans-release">Chargers also signed running back Hassan Haskins</a>, claiming him off waivers and reuniting him with Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh. Additionally, they’ve also locked in <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/chargers-news-la-cameron-dicker-passes-evan-mcpherson-22-million-contract">Cameron Dicker to a four-year, $22.004-million extension</a> with $12.5 million in guaranteed money.</p><p>Will a new coach and a new quarterback, among other roster moves, spark a turnaround for the Chargers after a disastrous 2023 campaign?</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Chargers’ Taylor Heinicke learns of trade while watching Michigan documentary

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-taylor-heinicke-on-tenuous-roster-standing-after-preseason-finale');   ga('set', 'title', 'Taylor Heinicke gets real on tenuous roster standing after Falcons preseason finale');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/0Taylor-Heinicke-gets-real-on-tenuous-roster-standing-after-preseason-finale-0.jpg"></figure><h1>Taylor Heinicke gets real on tenuous roster standing after Falcons preseason finale</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-08-24T09:04:01-07:00">August 24th, 9:04am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-08-24T09:04:01-07:00">August 24th, 9:04am</time><address><a>Ben Strauss</a>Ben Strauss is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. He is a die-hard NFL fan who cheers for the Detroit Lions. He has previously written fantasy football content for IDPGuys and ImportantNonsense.com.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons have seriously revamped their roster this offseason. They <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/grading-kirk-cousins-4-year-180-million-contract-with-falcons">brought in Kirk Cousins as their new franchise QB</a>. Atlanta also <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-2024-nfl-draft-grades-for-every-pick">drafted his eventual successor in Michael Penix Jr.</a> in the 2024 NFL Draft. That <a href="https://www.atlantafalcons.com/news/taylor-heinicke-quarterback-53-man-cut-deadline" rel="noopener">does not leave much room for a QB3 like Taylor Heinicke</a>.</p><p>“I would love to be a part of the Falcons,” Heinicke said after the Falcons’ final preseason game Saturday, a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/jaguars-vs-falcons-prediction-odds-pick-for-nfl-preseason" rel="noopener">31-0 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars</a> at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, per the team’s website. “I think this is probably the best roster I’ve been a part of when you look at it from top to bottom; I think Raheem (Morris, head coach) is building something special here, and I would love to be a part of it.”</p><p>Heinicke is hopeful that he can win a QB3 spot on the roster, but hope can be a dangerous thing during this time of the season.</p><p>“It’s one of the most stressful times,” Heinicke said. “It’s really the worst time of the NFL for all these guys, just kind of not knowing where you’re going to be.”</p><p>Thankfully, Heinicke can rest his hat on knowing he did his best and the rest is up to the coaching staff to decide.</p><p>“For me, personally, I did everything I could throughout OTAs and training camp,” Heinicke said. “When I got the reps, I tried to go out there and make the most of it. When I wasn’t in, I was trying to help Kirk and Mike in any way I could.”</p><p>“Again, I’d love to be an Atlanta Falcon,” Heinicke concluded. “If not, I love the game of football. I just want to keep playing football. That’s the dream.”</p><h2><b>Stephen A. Smith skeptical of Kirk Cousins, Falcons despite slew of offseason additions</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Kirk-Cousins-on-August-17-2024.jpg"><figcaption>Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>The Atlanta Falcons are the favorite to win the NFC South in 2024. It’s easy to understand why — they have the most talented roster in the division and have solved their biggest problem at QB.</p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIkl2skLcK8" rel="noopener">However, not everyone is convinced</a> that Atlanta is destined to succeed this fall.</p><p>In fact, ESPN’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-stephen-a-smith-hits-falcons-stern-reality-check-despite-offseason-success">Stephen A. Smith was recently skeptical of Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons</a>.</p><p>“How are we going to turn around with a team led by Kirk Cousins–assuming he’s in the lineup after his injury–how are we going to assume that they are going to have but so much success, particularly in the postseason?” Smith wondered on First Take.</p><p>Smith was willing to concede that the Falcons might win their division — but only because he has a low opinion of the NFC South.</p><p>“…Now if we had the discussion that they’re going to win the South and they’re going to be in the playoffs, alright cool,” Smith continued. “That division, I mean don’t get me started with the NFC South. But that’s not what this discussion was about. You’re talking about the Atlanta Falcons and you mentioned potential Super Bowl? Don’t you have to win a playoff game, which Kirk Cousins has seemed allergic to?”</p><p>Stephen A. may be correct that talking Super Bowl with the Falcons is rich at this point in the year.</p><p>That said, winning your division is one of the best things you can do in the regular season to set yourself up for success in the playoffs.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Taylor Heinicke gets real on tenuous roster standing after Falcons preseason finale

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/is-falcons-taylor-heinicke-playing-vs-saints-latest-week-18-injury-update');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons’ Desmond Ridder replacing injured Taylor Heinicke vs. Saints');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Is_Taylor_Heinicke_playing_vs._Saints_Latest_Week_18_injury_update.webp"></figure><h1>Falcons’ Desmond Ridder replacing injured Taylor Heinicke vs. Saints</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-01-07T08:55:38-08:00">January 7th, 8:55am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-01-07T09:22:56-08:00">January 7th, 9:22am</time><address><a>Zachary Weinberger</a>Zachary Weinberger joined ClutchPoints in October 2023 as a Miami Heat reporter as well as an Associate Editor. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2022 after covering the school's athletic programs since his freshman year at the FAU University Press, where he was a Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He then covered FAU Sports for The Palm Beach Post.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nfl-rumors-falcons-owner-arthur-blank-recent-moves-sugges-thinking-firing-arthur-smith" rel="noopener">The Atlanta Falcons are</a> preparing for Sunday afternoon’s regular-season finale against the New Orleans Saints with a chance to still make the playoffs However, the status of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-taylor-heinicke-injury-update-leaves-door-open-desmond-ridder-week-18" rel="noopener">quarterback Taylor Heinicke</a> was in question all week as he is dealing with a right ankle sprain, so is he playing in Week 18 vs. the Saints?</p><p>Unfortunately, Heinicke <a href="https://twitter.com/AtlantaFalcons/status/1744034262582481110" rel="noopener">is inactive</a> because of the injury and will be replaced by Desmond Ridder.</p><p><b><i>*Watch NFL games LIVE with fuboTV </i></b><a href="https://www.fubo.tv/lp/football/?irad=356362&amp;irmp=492408" rel="noopener sponsored"><b><i>(click for a free trial)*</i></b></a></p><h2><b>Taylor Heinicke injury status vs. Saints </b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Heinicke.jpg"></figure><p>Taylor Heinicke was listed as questionable for the game, and he and the Falcons were apparently <a href="https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/1743921162491728222" rel="noopener">“hopeful” that he</a> would be able to suit up and start the game against the Saints, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Unfortunately, he just wasn’t able to go after trying to make it happen.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-taylor-heinicke-brutally-honest-take-on-bears-loss" rel="noopener">Heinicke has been</a> the starting quarterback for the Falcons, taking the job from Desmond Ridder after the Cincinnati product struggled. Heinicke has started four games but won’t be able to make a fifth with a playoff spot on the line. He made his first appearance for the Falcons on October 29 against the Tennessee Titans. Combining that with the four games that came after, he has thrown for 890 yards, five touchdowns, and four interceptions.</p><p>As noted, there is still a chance <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nfl-rumors-russell-wilson-linked-to-falcons-steelers-patriots-amid-likely-broncos-exit" rel="noopener">for the Falcons to not</a> only make the playoffs but even win the division even with their 7-9 record heading into Week 18. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/atlanta-falcons-predictions-week-18-saints" rel="noopener">Atlanta has to handle business</a> against a divisional rival in the Saints and hope the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lose to the 2-14 Carolina Panthers.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons’ Desmond Ridder replacing injured Taylor Heinicke vs. Saints

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-taylor-heinicke-injury-update-leaves-door-open-desmond-ridder-week-18');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons QB Taylor Heinicke injury update leaves door open for Desmond Ridder in Week 18');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Falcons_news_Taylor_Heinicke_injury_update_leaves_door_open_for_Desmond_Ridder_in_Week_18.webp"></figure><h1>Falcons QB Taylor Heinicke injury update leaves door open for Desmond Ridder in Week 18</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-01-01T12:55:07-08:00">January 1st, 12:55pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-01-01T12:55:07-08:00">January 1st, 12:55pm</time><address><a>Sonny Giuliano</a>Sonny Giuliano has been covering the NFL, College Football, NBA and College Basketball for well over a decade, but he's never claimed to be an expert ... just a sports fan who cares WAY too much. Follow Sonny on Twitter (or X, whatever Elon's calling it) @SonnyCG for his sports and pop culture takes</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>It was NFL coaching, broadcasting, and video game <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/raiders-pay-tribute-to-john-madden-on-2-year-anniversary-of-his-passing">legend John Madden</a> who has been credited for uttering the oh-so-true prophecy, “If you have two quarterbacks, you actually have none.” Apparently, at least based on what we’ve seen this season, Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith is not a practicing member of the Church of Madden.</p><p>Arthur Smith and the Falcons have been operating a revolving door at quarterback all season, going back and forth between Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke with a curious amount of frequency because of injuries, poor play, general indecision on Smith’s part, or whatever the reason may be. Regardless of why Smith seemingly can’t settle on who he wants his starting quarterback to be on a week to week basis, the uninspiring duo of Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke has combined to perform as a bottom ten starting quarterback in the NFL. And now, heading into a must-win Week 18 game against the New Orleans Saints, Smith once again has to choose one of his two quarterbacks, only an ankle injury to Heinicke might force his hand.</p><p>“#Falcons coach Arthur Smith says QB Taylor Heinicke, dealing with a left-ankle injury, will do everything he can to play. They hope to know by Friday and will get Desmond Ridder ready, just in case.” (<a href="https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/1741890231198966218" rel="noopener">h/t</a> Ian Rapoport of NFL.com) </p><p>Together, Taylor Heinicke and Desmond Ridder have thrown for 3,191 yards, 15 touchdowns and 15 interceptions this season, which I’d be willing to guess is probably just as ugly as you imagined it would be. Any where you turn, there is just no good answer for the Falcons. This past weekend against Chicago, Heinicke looked completely overwhelmed. Just a week earlier, Ridder threw <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-qb-desmond-ridder-throws-one-of-worst-interceptions-of-season-vs-panthers">one of the worst interceptions</a> we’ve seen all season in a back-breaking loss to Carolina.</p><p>Even if Atlanta can end their season on a high note with a win over New Orleans, they’d still need Carolina to pull off an upset over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in order to make the Playoffs.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons QB Taylor Heinicke injury update leaves door open for Desmond Ridder in Week 18

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-desmond-ridder-atlanta-taylor-heinicke');   ga('set', 'title', 'Will Desmond Ridder have shot to take back Falcons’ starting job from Taylor Heinicke?');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/falcons-news-will-desmond-ridder-have-shot-to-take-back-starting-job-from-taylor-heinicke.webp"></figure><h1>Will Desmond Ridder have shot to take back Falcons’ starting job from Taylor Heinicke?</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-12-20T08:58:34-08:00">December 20th, 8:58am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-12-20T09:32:50-08:00">December 20th, 9:32am</time><address><a href="https://www.facebook.com/joey.mistretta/" rel="facebook">Joey Mistretta</a>Joey Mistretta is a Dallas Mavericks beat reporter and lead MLB editor for ClutchPoints. He is originally from a small town in Southern California. Mistretta graduated college with a degree in broadcast journalism from Biola University.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith said the team is <a href="https://twitter.com/tori_mcelhaney/status/1737513110582239444" rel="noopener">reportedly planning to start</a> quarterback Taylor Heinicke for the three remaining games in the 2023 season, per Falcons reporter Tori McElhaney. McElhaney <a href="https://twitter.com/tori_mcelhaney/status/1737515118643085631" rel="noopener">later provided</a> further information on the Falcons’ quarterback situation.</p><p>“Important to note: The plan after the Falcons Week 11 bye was that Ridder would be the starting QB in Atlanta for the remainder of season. So, even though Smith is saying this about Heinicke with three games left, plans change, and they have in Atlanta before,” McElhaney wrote on X (formerly Twitter).</p><h2><b>Desmond Ridder vs. Taylor Heinicke for Falcons</b></h2><p>Ridder, 24, is considered by many to be the Falcons’ quarterback of the future. The young QB <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-qb-desmond-ridder-throws-one-of-worst-interceptions-of-season-vs-panthers" rel="noopener">has endured struggles in 2023</a>, though. As a result, there are now <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-desmond-ridders-time-atlanta-might-be-over-latest-benching-taylor-heinicke" rel="noopener">concerns about Ridder’s future with Atlanta</a>.</p><p>Ridder has thrown for 2,528 yards to go along with 10 touchdowns in 2023. However, he’s also thrown 10 interceptions and hasn’t been able to develop much consistency for Atlanta.</p><p>Ridder’s upside is exciting. There is no question that he features the ability to become a reliable NFL quarterback. But the results have yet to fully display themselves on the field.</p><p>Heinicke, a veteran who made his NFL debut in 2017, probably isn’t the Falcons’ long-term answer either. He will finish the season as Atlanta’s QB, unless another change is made. Heinicke has shown signs of potential in the past, and perhaps he can make a bid to earn the starting job by finishing the season strong.</p><p>The Falcons’ quarterback situation has a lot of uncertainty at the moment. They would surely prefer for Ridder to be their QB of the future, but his 2023 performance did not leave much room for optimism.</p><p>Atlanta holds a 6-8 record following their 9-7 loss to the Carolina Panthers in Week 15. Heinicke will try to help the Falcons end the season on a high note.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Will Desmond Ridder have shot to take back Falcons’ starting job from Taylor Heinicke?

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-desmond-ridders-time-atlanta-might-be-over-latest-benching-taylor-heinicke');   ga('set', 'title', 'Desmond Ridder’s time with Falcons might be over with latest benching for Taylor Heinicke');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Desmond_Ridder_s_time_in_Atlanta_might_be_over_with_latest_benching_for_Taylor_Heinicke.webp"></figure><h1>Desmond Ridder’s time with Falcons might be over with latest benching for Taylor Heinicke</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-12-19T07:08:56-08:00">December 19th, 7:08am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-12-19T07:08:56-08:00">December 19th, 7:08am</time><address><a>Ryan Bologna</a>Ryan Bologna is an author at ClutchPoints. He studied journalism and communication at UConn.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons are <a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/39145964/falcons-turning-back-qb-taylor-heinicke-source-confirms" rel="noopener">making a quarterback change</a> once again, as they are going back to Taylor Heinicke after Desmond Ridder struggled on Sunday in a 9-7 loss to the Carolina Panthers. This is the second time the Falcons have made this move this season, and head coach Arthur Smith spoke about the possibility of making that decision on Monday.</p><p>“That’s usually not a great situation to have,” Arthur Smith said, via Michael Rothstein of ESPN. “You want to be fair and objective and obviously give people an opportunity. It was a belief in him, no matter what happens. It doesn’t mean anybody’s career is over, but we have to do what’s best for this team right now.”</p><p>It looked as if the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smith-undecided-desmond-ridder-taylor-heinicke-week-16-starter" rel="noopener">Falcons</a> were going to extend their 7-6 lead late in the game against the Panthers, but Desmond Ridder threw an interception in the red zone. The turnover took away a chance for the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/why-falcons-must-move-on-from-arthur-smith-after-disastrous-loss-to-panthers" rel="noopener">Falcons</a> to extend their lead even by three, which would have required the Panthers to score a touchdown to win. Instead, Carolina drove down and kicked a game-winning field goal to win 9-7 for its second win of the year.</p><p>The loss to the Panthers was not a death blow for the Falcons, but it makes every game from here on out a virtual must-win. They are 6-8, and trail the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints in the NFC South. Both teams are 7-7.</p><p>Atlanta finishes with three games against the Indianapolis Colts, Chicago Bears and the Saints. The game this weekend against the Colts is at home, while the Bears and Saints games are on the road for Atlanta. It has to start with a win against a Colts team fighting for its life as well. The hope is that Heinicke is able to help the Falcons win those three games and win the NFC South.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Desmond Ridder’s time with Falcons might be over with latest benching for Taylor Heinicke

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-arthur-smith-undecided-desmond-ridder-taylor-heinicke-week-16-starter');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons’ Arthur Smith undecided on Desmond Ridder, Taylor Heinicke as Week 16 starter');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Arthur-Smith-undecided-on-Desmond-Ridder-Taylor-Heinicke-as-Week-16-starter.webp"></figure><h1>Falcons’ Arthur Smith undecided on Desmond Ridder, Taylor Heinicke as Week 16 starter</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-12-18T11:27:25-08:00">December 18th, 11:27am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-12-18T11:27:25-08:00">December 18th, 11:27am</time><address><a>Owen Crisafulli</a>Owen Crisafulli is a Senior Editor and NFL Lead at ClutchPoints. He recently received his Masters in Business Administration from Nichols College. Previously, he obtained his Bachelor's degree in Sport Management and for a while ran his own sports website. Sports are his passion, and he thoroughly enjoys writing about thoughts and opinions that are related to the game. He has been a lifelong fan of the major professional teams in Boston and loves discussing all topics surrounding those teams.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons have had another up-and-down 2023 campaign, but their latest outing, a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/atlanta-falcons-most-to-blame-disgusting-week-15-loss-panthers" rel="noopener">9-7 loss</a> to the Carolina Panthers in Week 15, is likely going to represent rock bottom for this team. Desmond Ridder looked awful under center once again for Atlanta, and now head coach Arthur Smith has a big decision to make when it comes to his starting quarterback for Week 16.</p><p>In a rain soaked game, Ridder’s numbers weren’t awful (12/20, 152 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT), but he continues to struggle to put points on the board, and he threw <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-qb-desmond-ridder-throws-one-of-worst-interceptions-of-season-vs-panthers" rel="noopener">one of the worst interceptions</a> of the season that eventually led to the Panthers game-winning field goal. Ridder’s continued struggles have put Smith in a tough spot, and he admitted <a href="https://twitter.com/mikerothstein/status/1736811419067461736" rel="noopener">he doesn’t know</a> if Ridder or Taylor Heinicke will get the start at quarterback in Week 16 against the Indianapolis Colts.</p><p>Via Michael Rothstein:</p><p>“Falcons coach Arthur Smith said he hasn’t made a decision yet between Desmond Ridder or Taylor Heinicke at quarterback Sunday against Indianapolis. Said they won’t bring in another QB or start Logan Woodside.”</p><h2><b>Arthur Smith has big decision to make when it comes to Falcons Week 16 starter</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Arthur-Smith_s-evasive-response-on-Desmond-Ridder-Taylor-Heinicke-question.jpg"></figure><p>One way or another, either Ridder or Heinicke will be playing, but neither option is particularly appealing for the Falcons. Ridder has looked awful in his first season as a starter, and was benched earlier in the season in favor of Heinicke. The problem is Heinicke didn’t look much better under center, which prompted Smith to turn back to Ridder.</p><p>All in all, the quarterback situation is pretty dire for the Falcons either way, and with their playoff hopes barely hanging on by a thread, it likely won’t matter who they start moving forward. But with Ridder continuing to struggle, Smith may have no choice but to turn to Heinicke for the final three games of the regular season, and it will be worth keeping an eye out to see what his final decision ends up being.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons’ Arthur Smith undecided on Desmond Ridder, Taylor Heinicke as Week 16 starter

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-atlanta-back-desmond-ridder-taylor-heinicke-starter');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons turning back to Desmond Ridder over Taylor Heinicke as starter');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Falcons-new-Atlanta-makes-Desmond-Ridder-starter-decision-ahead-of-Week-11-vs-Saints.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons turning back to Desmond Ridder over Taylor Heinicke as starter</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-19T05:20:18-08:00">November 19th, 5:20am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-19T05:20:18-08:00">November 19th, 5:20am</time><address><a>Gerard Angelo Samillano</a>Gerard is an Associate Editor for ClutchPoints, with his focus primarily on the NBA, NFL, and Gaming. When he's not writing for CP, Gerard can often be seen playing VALORANT or playing pick-up basketball. He's also working on his BS Mathematics degree.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>What are the Atlanta Falcons doing? No one really knows, if we’re being honest. Despite a mediocre record, Atlanta has been under <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-hc-arthur-smiths-puzzling-bijan-robinson-comments-have-fans-furious" rel="noopener">heavy scrutiny</a> this season. A big part of the questions around the Falcons revolve around <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smiths-taylor-heinicke-desmond-ridder" rel="noopener">their quarterback situation</a>. Desmond Ridder’s performance this year ranged from passable to downright horrid, mostly skewing towards the latter option.</p><p>There’s a good reason why Ridder was benched by the Falcons in favor of Taylor Heinecke. The former Washington Commanders vet played a few games for Atlanta, but he suffered an injury during their last game. As a result, the team deciding to<a href="https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/1726209410958303730" rel="noopener"> name Ridder the starter</a> once again for their game against the New Orleans Saints, per Ian Rapoport.</p><p>“Sources: The #Falcons will start QB Desmond Ridder going forward, beginning with their next game against the #Saints, handing the ball back to their original starter.”</p><p>James Palmer also<a href="https://twitter.com/JamesPalmerTV/status/1726213913166115309" rel="noopener"> shared some insight</a> on the Falcons’ logic behind the Desmond Ridder benching. It seems that the benching was never meant to be permanent, but rather a chance for Ridder to mentally recover.</p><p>“From what I’m told, the Falcons believed the bulk of Ridder’s mistakes were correctable &amp; felt he had a lot of learning to do. A move back to him was always planned unless Taylor Heinicke went on a ridiculous run. It wasn’t like they fell out of love with Ridder. Needed a reset.”</p><p>There are plenty of other problems on the Falcons’ season, but the play at the QB position hasn’t helped matters. Ridder has some moments, but most of the time, he’s made questionable decisions and even more questionable throws. We’ll see if the extended break lit a fire under the star, or if the same problems will come back to haunt them.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons turning back to Desmond Ridder over Taylor Heinicke as starter

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-arthur-smith-starting-qb-taylor-heinicke-injury');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons’ Arthur Smith declines to name starting QB after Taylor Heinicke injury');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Falcons.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons’ Arthur Smith declines to name starting QB after Taylor Heinicke injury</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-13T13:26:51-08:00">November 13th, 1:26pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-13T13:26:51-08:00">November 13th, 1:26pm</time><address><a>Tim Capurso</a>Tim Capurso is the Lead NFL and College Football Editor at ClutchPoints while also covering a wide range of sports. Originally from a small town in New York, Tim graduated from Assumption University in Worcester, Massachusetts in 2018 with a BA in Writing and Mass Communications. He joined ClutchPoints in 2021. The lifelong New York Giants fan now resides in enemy territory, aka the heart of Eagles country, just outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smith-brutally-honest-on-crushing-loss-vs-cardinals">Falcons</a> have a decision to make as they head into their bye following a 25-23 loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 10. Just two weeks after benching then-starting quarterback and second-year pro Desmond Ridder for veteran Taylor Heinicke- who suffered an injury on Sunday- Falcons head coach Arthur Smith on Monday <a href="https://twitter.com/terrinwaack/status/1724125682177908951?s=12&amp;t=bm8qRt18zuhlXFzV7rKRAQ">was asked</a> if it would be premature to name a starting QB right now, per Terrin Waack of the team’s website.</p><h2><b>Arthur Smith mum on Falcons’ starting QB </b></h2><p>“On the bye week, so take some time, step back and look at everything. Yeah a little premature. I mean, obviously, both of those guys have done some good things and some of the things we have to assess.”</p><p>Smith is not ready to name a starting QB with the Falcons heading into a bye, telling reporters there are things the team needs to “assess.”</p><p>One of those things will be Heinicke’s performance in the QB1 role, as the veteran has thrown for 443 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in two starts, both games lost by the Atlanta defense in the contest’s final seconds. Another one of those things will be Heinicke’s injury.</p><h2>Heinicke has ‘low grade’ hamstring injury</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Heinicke.jpg"></figure><p>Smith said that Heinicke has a “low grade” hamstring injury. The Falcons QB suffered the injury while scrambling on an eight-yard run in the fourth quarter. He immediately grabbed his leg and stayed down before he was removed from the contest and replaced by Ridder.</p><p>The Falcons’ bye week certainly came at the right time for Heinicke, who will get the extra time to recover from the injury, though it’s still unclear if the issue will sideline him for any games. If it does, Ridder will step back into the starting role.</p><h2><b>Desmond Ridder’s struggles</b></h2><p>Ridder, who began the year as the Falcons’ starter, threw for 1,740 yards, six touchdowns and six interceptions along with seven fumbles.</p><p>The turnovers were an issue for the second year QB, especially in October games against the Jacksonville Jaguars and Washington Commanders, whom he tossed two and three interceptions against, respectively.</p><p>Smith didn’t bench Ridder after either of those games, but finally saw enough during his team’s Week 8 loss to the Tennessee Titans, when he pulled Ridder in the first half.</p><p>The question now is- assuming Heinicke is healthy- has Smith seen enough from the veteran to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smith-100-real-on-desmond-ridders-performance-vs-cardinals">turn back to Ridder</a>?</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons’ Arthur Smith declines to name starting QB after Taylor Heinicke injury

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-arthur-smiths-taylor-heinicke-desmond-ridder');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons coach Arthur Smith’s perfect ‘musical chairs’ answer on Taylor Heinicke, Desmond Ridder QB chatter');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Falcons-news-Arthur-Smith_s-perfect-_musical-chairs_-answer-on-Taylor-Heinicke-Desmond-Ridder-QB-chatter.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons coach Arthur Smith’s perfect ‘musical chairs’ answer on Taylor Heinicke, Desmond Ridder QB chatter</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-08T13:20:17-08:00">November 8th, 1:20pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-08T13:20:17-08:00">November 8th, 1:20pm</time><address><a>Eva Geitheim</a>Eva started as an Associate Editor for Clutch Points in 2023 after recently graduating from UCLA. She has previously written for Lineups.com and is a big fan of all Bay Area sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith announced that Taylor Heinicke will <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smith-makes-unsurprising-taylor-heinicke-decision-week-10" rel="noopener">get his second straight start</a> this weekend against the Arizona Cardinals. Heinicke initially came into play for the Falcons in Week 8 versus the Tennessee Titans after Desmond Ridder exited for concussion protocol.</p><p>Smith decided to stick with Heinicke the next week against the Minnesota Vikings. Though Heinicke and Falcons lost 31-28, they were close to getting the win if it weren’t for some late-game <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/josh-dobbs-heroics-vs-falcons-sends-minnesota-fans-in-frenzy">Joshua Dobbs magic</a>. In the loss, Heinicke went 21-38 for 268 yards with a touchdown and interception. Now, Smith plans to keep Heinicke as the starter going forward as he doesn’t want to keep switching the quarterbacks.</p><p>“<a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/38849111/falcons-averse-musical-chairs-taylor-heinicke-desmond-ridder" rel="noopener">We’re not going to play</a> musical chairs,” Arthur Smith said Wednesday. “Hopefully we can go get this win. Take a second to really evaluate as we make that sprint towards the end of the season. “That’s the best I can give you right now,” via ESPN’s Michael Rothstein.</p><p>As Heinicke prepares for the Cardinals, Ridder will take a backseat. The second-year quarterback was unable to play consistently after going into the year as the starter. On the season, Ridder completed 65.4% of his passes for 1,701 yards with six touchdowns and six interceptions.</p><p>While Ridder had flashes of good plays, moments and drives, he too often produced a poorly-timed turnover or kept the Falcons offense from hitting his potential. Heinicke might not maximize the offensive scheme or talents of Kyle Pitts, Drake London and Bijan Robinson, but he should take their offense up a level.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons coach Arthur Smith’s perfect ‘musical chairs’ answer on Taylor Heinicke, Desmond Ridder QB chatter

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-arthur-smith-makes-unsurprising-taylor-heinicke-decision-week-10');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons’ Arthur Smith makes unsurprising Taylor Heinicke decision for Week 10');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Falcons-news-Arthur-Smith-makes-unsurprising-Taylor-Heinicke-decision-for-Week-10.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons’ Arthur Smith makes unsurprising Taylor Heinicke decision for Week 10</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-06T11:12:57-08:00">November 6th, 11:12am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-06T11:12:57-08:00">November 6th, 11:12am</time><address><a>Ryan Bologna</a>Ryan Bologna is an author at ClutchPoints. He studied journalism and communication at UConn.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith announced that Taylor Heinicke will <a href="https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/1721591195124617507" rel="noopener">start again</a> for the team this week on the road against the Arizona Cardinals, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smith-fired-up-about-taylor-heinicke-starting-over-desmond-ridder" rel="noopener">Falcons</a> and Arthur Smith started the year with Desmond Ridder as the starter, and decided to hand over the starting duties to Taylor Heinicke for Sunday’s game against the Minnnesota Vikings, which they lost 31-28. Heinicke completed 21-of-38 passes and threw a touchdown and an interception.</p><p>The Vikings came into the game with Jaren Hall starting at quarterback, who left due to injury, which led to Josh Dobbs, who was just traded to the team the week before bringing Minnesota to a miraculous victory.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smith-scorched-earth-kurt-warner-criticizes-offense" rel="noopener">Falcons</a> fell to 4-5 on the season with the loss to the Vikings, and are one game back of the New Orleans Saints for the lead in the NFC South. Despite the disappointing loss, the division is still right there for Smith and Atlanta, who hope that Heinicke is able to lead them there.</p><p>It would be massively disappointing for the Falcons to lose to the Cardinals this week, who have just one win on the season. However, Kyler Murray could be returning for Arizona, which could make things harder. Regardless, the Falcons need to win this week before a massive game at home against the Saints, which will be huge for the division race.</p><p>Smith clearly believes that Heinicke is the best choice to lead the team’s offense, despite the rough loss to the Vikings on Sunday.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons’ Arthur Smith makes unsurprising Taylor Heinicke decision for Week 10

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-arthur-smith-evasive-on-taylor-heinickes-future-after-missed-opportunity-vs-vikings');   ga('set', 'title', 'Arthur Smith evasive on Taylor Heinicke’s future after ‘missed opportunity’ vs. Vikings');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Falcons-news-Arthur-Smith-evasive-on-Taylor-Heinicke_s-future-after-_missed-opportunity_-vs.jpg"><figcaption>11/5/23</figcaption></figure><h1>Arthur Smith evasive on Taylor Heinicke’s future after ‘missed opportunity’ vs. Vikings</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-05T14:28:06-08:00">November 5th, 2:28pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-05T14:28:06-08:00">November 5th, 2:28pm</time><address><a>Steve Silverman</a>Steve Silverman has been covering the NFL for more than 35 years, and his writing has appeared in ESPN Magazine, Playboy, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, Pro Football Weekly, and Forbes.com. He has written 10 books, including "Who's Better, Who's Best in the NFL." He has won multiple awards from the Pro Football Writers of America.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/vikings-news-josh-dobbs-replaces-injured-jaren-hall-after-massive-hit" rel="noopener">Atlanta Falcons</a> appeared to have a huge advantage in their Week 9 home game against the injury-plagued Minnesota Vikings. A week after the Vikings lost QB1 Kirk Cousins to a season-ending Achilles injury, backup quarterback Jaren Hall was knocked out of the game in the first quarter with a concussion. Falcons head coach Arthur Smith and quarterback Taylor Heinicke were unable to use this edge to their advantage as they dropped a 31-28 decision to the Vikings.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Falcons head coach Arthur Smith was asked whether Taylor Heinicke will remain the starting quarterback in Week 10: "Not right now. We have to get back and evaluate. I'm not going to give you answer before we've looked at everything."</p><p>— Terrin Waack (@TerrinWaack) <a href="https://twitter.com/TerrinWaack/status/1721280554346152037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 5, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>After the defeat, which finished a game-winning touchdown drive led by newcomer Josh Dobbs, Smith was upset that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smith-fired-up-about-taylor-heinicke-starting-over-desmond-ridder" rel="noopener">the Falcons</a> let victory slip through their grasp. Heinicke had several positive moments throughout the game in his first start for the Falcons, but Smith would <a href="https://twitter.com/TerrinWaack/status/1721280554346152037" rel="noopener">not commit</a> to him as the starter going forward.</p><p>“Not right now,” Smith said. “We have to get back and evaluate. I’m not going to give you answer before we’ve looked at everything.”</p><p>Arthur Smith admitted there were a number of things he liked about the quarterback’s performance. “We did turn the ball over. But I thought he operated well on third down. Obviously we’ll huddle up and evaluate everything. But he did give us chances.”</p><p>Heinicke directed a drive late in the 4th quarter that gave the Falcons a 28-24 lead. He completed 21 of 38 passes for 268 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception. He also scrambled 3 times for 20 yards.</p><p>Dobbs, acquired by the Vikings days ago after the Cousins injury, trumped Heinicke when he led an 11-play, 75-yard game-winning drive that culminated with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Powell with 22 seconds left.</p><p> </p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Arthur Smith evasive on Taylor Heinicke’s future after ‘missed opportunity’ vs. Vikings

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-arthur-smith-fired-up-about-taylor-heinicke-starting-over-desmond-ridder');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons’ Arthur Smith’s ‘fired up’ response to Taylor Heinicke starting over Desmond Ridder');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/falcons-news-arthur-smiths-fired-up-response-to-taylor-heinicke-starting-over-desmond-ridder.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons’ Arthur Smith’s ‘fired up’ response to Taylor Heinicke starting over Desmond Ridder</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-03T11:35:24-07:00">November 3rd, 11:35am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-03T11:35:24-07:00">November 3rd, 11:35am</time><address><a>Benedetto Vitale</a>Benedetto Vitale is an avid sports writer who is an expert at covering the NFL, college football, and UFC. He graduated from the University of Oregon in 2016 with a film degree but has since dedicated his career to sports writing. Go Titans, go Ducks, and go Kraken!</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons made a quarterback change midway through their game against the Tennessee Titans. A concussion scare led to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-desmond-ridder-reacts-benched-taylor-heinicke-atlanta-qb1" rel="noopener">Desmond Ridder being benched</a> while Taylor Heinicke stepped in and looked great.</p><p>Since then, Heinicke has been named the starter, and head coach Arthur Smith is ecstatic about it, according to ESPN’s Pat McAfee. He went as far as to claim that he’s “fired up” for Heinicke.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“That’s big time journalism right there 😂😂</p><p>We’re excited about Taylor Heinicke playing and we’re fired up” ~ Artie Smith<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PMSLive?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PMSLive</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DirtyBirds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DirtyBirds</a> <a href="https://t.co/kg7khp3xZR">pic.twitter.com/kg7khp3xZR</a></p><p>— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) <a href="https://twitter.com/PatMcAfeeShow/status/1720497378367525316?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 3, 2023</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://instagram.com/embed.js"></script></p></figure><p>Considering the Atlanta’s offense was actually able to move the ball downfield when Taylor Heinicke stepped in, it makes sense why Smith is so excited.  Even if there’s a chance Drake London doesn’t play, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-atlanta-crushing-drake-london-injury-blow-for-week-9" rel="noopener">the Falcons</a> should be a little more exciting on the offensive end.</p><p>Heinicke put up a decent statline in Week 8, recording 175 passing yards and one touchdown. He also totaled 14 rushing yards. He put the Falcons in position to win the game, however, a dropped pass on fourth down led to Atlanta’s downfall.</p><p>As for Desmond Ridder, he’s basically been a roller coaster all season. Before being pulled, he put up 1,701 passing yards, six touchdowns, and six interceptions on the season.</p><p>Week 9 is a pivotal matchup for the Falcons. They’re currently tied for first place in the NFC South with the New Orleans Saints. They have to secure a win against the Minnesota Vikings to maintain their standing in the division.</p><p>For that reason, we should expect to see Taylor Heinicke take full command of the offense and do his part to help Atlanta remain in the playoff hunt.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons’ Arthur Smith’s ‘fired up’ response to Taylor Heinicke starting over Desmond Ridder

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-desmond-ridder-reacts-benched-taylor-heinicke-atlanta-qb1');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons: Desmond Ridder reacts to being benched for Taylor Heinicke as Atlanta’s QB1');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Falcons-news-Desmond-Ridder-reacts-to-being-benched-for-Taylor-Heinicke-as-Atlanta_s-QB1.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons: Desmond Ridder reacts to being benched for Taylor Heinicke as Atlanta’s QB1</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-02T19:23:35-07:00">November 2nd, 7:23pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-02T19:23:35-07:00">November 2nd, 7:23pm</time><address><a>Christopher Smith</a>Chris Smith is a writer and sports enthusiast from Aurora, Illinois. He currently serves as an Associate Editor, covering all sports at ClutchPoints. Smith earned a degree in philosophy from Creighton University, where he also competed as a Division 1 Cross Country runner. In his free time, he enjoys watching basketball, distance running, playing NBA 2K, and eating good food.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons are on a bit of a cold streak but remain 1st in the NFC South. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-positive-desmond-ridder-injury-update-taylor-heinicke-to-start" rel="noopener">Falcons prepare to take on</a> the Minnesota Vikings in Week 9. However, the team has made a change in their starting quarterback. Desmond Ridder will take the backup role while Taylor Heinicke will lead off. Despite his demotion, Ridder has <a href="https://www.ajc.com/sports/atlanta-falcons/falcons-desmond-ridder-on-being-benched/84d533c6-bb2c-4ea0-8031-f700e9f6385b/" rel="noopener">a great attitude</a> about the move.</p><h2><b>Desmond Ridder will stay ready for action despite not starting</b></h2><p>Ridder talked through his perspective on Atlanta’s move for Sunday’s game in a post-practice interview:</p><p>“I want to play. I want to be out there, but at the end of the day, decisions are made. We’re on to [Week 9] against Minnesota and I know that at any point in time, my name could be called again so I just have to be ready to go,” Ridder said, per The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.</p><p>The second-year QB also said that he would use his opportunity on the sideline to help the starting QB as much as possible. Ridder’s response is a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-arthur-smith-evasive-response-desmond-ridder-taylor-heinicke-question" rel="noopener">great sign for Atlanta</a>.</p><p>There is no doubt Ridder wants the starting job, but he is focused on keeping himself ready for when the coaching staff needs him. Head coach Arthur Smith previously gave a cloudy response to who would be the lead QB after Taylor Heinicke’s impressive performance in Week 8.</p><p>Heinicke subbed in for Ridder, who left the game due to concussion protocols. Heinicke threw for 175 yards and one TD. The 30-year-old had not seen much action during the 2023-24 season until that game. Now, he and Ridder will provide a one-two punch as Atlanta looks to climb the NFC South.</p><p> </p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons: Desmond Ridder reacts to being benched for Taylor Heinicke as Atlanta’s QB1

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-positive-desmond-ridder-injury-update-taylor-heinicke-to-start');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons get positive Desmond Ridder injury update with Taylor Heinicke set to start');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Falcons-news-Atlanta-gets-positive-Desmond-Ridder-injury-update-with-Taylor-Heinicke-set-to-start.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons get positive Desmond Ridder injury update with Taylor Heinicke set to start</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2023-11-02T14:47:17-07:00">November 2nd, 2:47pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2023-11-02T14:47:17-07:00">November 2nd, 2:47pm</time><address><a>Benedetto Vitale</a>Benedetto Vitale is an avid sports writer who is an expert at covering the NFL, college football, and UFC. He graduated from the University of Oregon in 2016 with a film degree but has since dedicated his career to sports writing. Go Titans, go Ducks, and go Kraken!</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NFL</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-atlanta-makes-taylor-heinicke-desmond-ridder-decision-week-9-vs-vikings" rel="noopener">Falcons originally benched</a> Desmond Ridder in Week 8 after putting him through the concussion protocol. However, the coaching staff opted to keep him out after passing the tests.</p><p>Despite that, Ridder found himself on the injury report shortly after that game. But now it appears he’s <a href="https://twitter.com/mikerothstein/status/1720176336788930652" rel="noopener">fully cleared</a> of injury, according to ESPN’s Michael Rothstein. That’s great news for the second-year quarterback, as he’ll be available for the team’s Week 9 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings.</p><p>“Falcons QB Desmond Ridder is no longer listed on Atlanta’s injury report.”</p><p>Although he’ll be good to go, Taylor Heinicke is going to be the starter. The Falcons’ offense looked much more lively once Heinicke stepped in for the second half against the Tennessee Titans. Atlanta even had a real chance to win the game in the closing minutes even though they fell to a big lead at halftime.</p><p>With that said, we should expect to see Taylor Heinicke as the starter in Atlanta until further notice. Ridder didn’t bring much to the table, despite leading the team to a winning record before Week 8.</p><p>Through eight games this year, Ridder has totaled 1,701 passing yards, six touchdowns, and six interceptions. As for Heinicke, this isn’t the first time he’s stepped in and taken over as the starting quarterback. He proved to be an exciting option for the Washington Commanders, albeit, his play is inconsistent.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-atlanta-drake-london-injury-update" rel="noopener">The Falcons</a> are currently tied for first place of the NFC South with the New Orleans Saints. If Heinicke can play well, there’s a chance f0r Atlanta to be a playoff contender this season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2024 SEASON STATS
PASSING YDS	PASSING TDS	INTERCEPTIONS	POSITION RANK
47.8	0	0	46

2024 SEASON STATS
PASSING YDS	PASSING TDS	INTERCEPTIONS	POSITION RANK
47.8	0	0	46

Taylor Heinicke news

Taylor
Heinicke news