back who used to be a full-time starter in the NFL looking for a spot at rookie minicamp, but getting any sort of opportunity in this league is a gift.
That’s why nobody really blinked an eye when quarterback Desmond Ridder, a former 13-game starter for the Atlanta Falcons in 2023, accepted an invite to Denver Broncos minicamp on May 6. It’s an offer that, just a few day later, doesn’t seem like it’s going to materialize.
Sources: Former Atlanta and Vegas QB Desmond Ridder not likely to be at #Broncos rookie minicamp after all,” The Denver Post’s Parker Gabriel wrote on his official X account on May 8. “The 2022 third-round pick was slated to be in town as a veteran tryout but now no longer happening.”
It might be that Ridder realized it wasn’t the right opportunity for him or it might be the Broncos realized they don’t need to bring another quarterback into the mix in a room that appears totally set as is.
Starter Bo Nix is headed into his second season, veteran Jarrett Stidham as the Broncos’ No. 2 quarterback for the third consecutive season and there’s a solid No. 3 quarterback in Sam Ehlinger.
“Ridder became a free agent in March after the Raiders did not tender a contract to him as a restricted free agent,” Pro Football Talk’s Charean Williams wrote on May 8. “The Falcons made Ridder a third-round pick in 2022, and they traded him to the Cardinals a year ago. He didn’t make the cut to 53 players, and the Raiders signed him off Arizona’s practice squad when Aidan O’Connell went on injured reserve in October. O’Connell returned but Ridder stuck around because Gardner Minshew went down for the season.”
It had only been 2 days since news broke of Ridder joining the Broncos.
“Biggest name perhaps at Broncos rookie minicamp this weekend: QB Desmond Ridder is getting a vet tryout with Broncos, per source,” 9News Mike Klis reported in a post on X on May 6. “Started 13 games in 2023.”
Ridder’s Short and Rocky Road Through NFL
Ridder shot to fame at the University of Cincinnati, where he was a 2-time AAC Offensive Player of the Year. He also led the Bearcats to the College Football Playoff following the 2021 season, becoming the first team from the Group of Five to make the CFP.
Projected as high as the No. 8 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft, Ridder’s stock dipped and he plummeted to the Atlanta Falcons in the third round. where he signed a 4-year, $5.3 million contract.
