The Atlanta Falcons have been one of the more underwhelming teams during the 2023 NFL season as they’ve got several talented young offensive pieces on the roster, yet are being underutilized.
Head coach Arthur Smith has come under fire for his deployment of players like Drake London, Kyle Pitts, and Bijan Robinson and could very well find himself out of a job if the Falcons miss the postseason.
Desmond Ridder opened the year as the starting quarterback, and it’s been a rollercoaster as the second-year quarterback consistently left plays on the field.
With Ridder struggling, Smith turned to backup Taylor Heinicke as the starter.
Heinicke’s had success with the Washington Commanders in the past, and is a more natural pocket passer than Ridder is.
However, Terry Bradshaw took exception with Ridder’s benching and didn’t hold back his criticism of Smith via FOX.
“I have no respect for him after Smith messed with that young quarterback Desmond Ridder like that and you set him back,” Bradshaw said.
terry bradshaw cooked arthur smith.
notice the number of losses in front of the number of seasons…
we can never escape it… pic.twitter.com/fIByORpBmE
— pboyydouglas (@milfhunterjones) December 24, 2023
Smith previously said that he was going to ride with Ridder as the team’s starter, but clearly changed course once the team started to drop games in the middle of the year.
To Bradshaw’s point, it’s damaging to a player’s confidence when a coach says something just to later go back on their word.
There’s no question that Smith has mismanaged several situations over the course of the year, and he would have been better off leaving things like the quarterback position open in order to give himself an out.
Now, however, Smith is likely coaching for his job and he better hope that the switch to Heinicke pays off.
NEXT:
Analyst Names 1 Team Acquiring Justin Fields As A ‘Perfect Scenario’ This Offseason