The Atlanta Falcons are benching starting quarterback Desmond Ridder and starting Taylor Heinicke on Sunday when they host the Minnesota Vikings.
Atlanta coach Arthur Smith said the move is for this week and doesn’t necessarily mean Heinicke will remain the starter for the rest of the season.
“Really our focus is short term and what gives us the best chance for Sunday,” Smith said Wednesday. “Right now we're focused on Minnesota.”
Ridder has struggled recently with 10 turnovers in Atlanta’s last five games, and Heinicke replaced Ridder last week at Tennessee after the 2022 third-round draft pick was evaluated for a concussion.
Ridder was cleared to return, but Smith kept Heinicke in for the rest of the Falcons’ 28-23 loss to the Titans.
Heinicke made his Falcons debut after signing a $20million, two-year contract in March.
He completed 12 of 21 passes for 171 yards and a touchdown.
“Lot of positive qualities in Taylor,” Smith said. “He’s been a great fit here and that’s why we brought him in here.”
Last week’s defeat dropped Atlanta to 4-4 on the season and into a first-place tie with the New Orleans Saints in the NFC South.
Chiefs receiver Rice promises to 'mature' after troubled offseason
Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice has vowed to mature after a tumultuous offseason that saw him arrested for allegedly causing a six-vehicle crash.
Rice faces charges including aggravated assault after he and another driver of a speeding car allegedly caused a pile-up on a Dallas highway in April.
He was also investigated in connection with an alleged assault in a Dallas nightclub, but police said no charges would be brought against him over that incident last month.
The second-year receiver – who caught six passes for 39 yards as the Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers to win Super Bowl LVIII in February – says he has learned from those incidents and is determined to put them behind him.
"I've learned so much from that," he said. "All I can do is mature and continue to grow from that. This is a step in a better direction for me.
"Accidents and stuff like that happen, but all you can do is move forward and walk around being the same person, try to be positive so that everybody can feel your love and your great energy."
Rice's 26 passes caught throughout last season's playoffs represented a new record for any rookie, beating Ja'Marr Chase's total of 25 from two years earlier.
Throughout his first regular season in the league, the former SMU Mustangs man caught 79 passes for 938 yards and seven touchdowns in 16 games.
NFL star RB McCaffrey agrees to $38M extension with San Francisco 49ers
Christian McCaffrey has reset the running back market in the NFL.
McCaffrey agreed to a two-year, $38million extension with the San Francisco 49ers on Tuesday, making him the league's highest-paid running back.
The new deal keeps McCaffrey, who turns 28 on Friday, under contract for the next four years after he signed a four-year, $64million extension in 2020 following his third season with the Carolina Panthers.
The 49ers acquired McCaffrey from the Panthers via a trade during the 2022 season, and he won the AP Offensive Player of the Year award in his first full season in San Francisco in 2023 after leading the NFL in rushing with 1,459 yards with 14 touchdowns.
He added another 564 receiving yards and seven TD receptions to help the 49ers secure the top seed in the NFC.
In 27 games with the 49ers, he has 2,205 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns to go with 1,028 receiving yards and 11 receiving TDs.
Since his 2017 rookie season, he leads all players with 10,505 scrimmage yards, while his 81 scrimmage touchdowns trail only Derrick Henry's 88.
Known for his bruising running style, McCaffrey also leads all players with 72 runs of at least 10 yards over the last two seasons.
McCaffrey attended the first day of San Francisco's mandatory mini-camp on Tuesday after skipping voluntary work-outs over the last two weeks.
Vikings, wide receiver Jefferson reportedly agree to massive $140M contract extension
Justin Jefferson has put up record-setting numbers on the football field.
He now has a record-setting contract to go with it.
Jefferson and the Minnesota Vikings agreed Monday to a four-year extension that will reportedly make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
The deal includes $88million at signing, $110million in guaranteed money and is worth as much as $140million.
"Justin is an exceptionally talented player and an incredible person that I am honored to coach and have as a team captain," Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said in a statement. "His positive energy and love for the game shows up every single day as he works to be the best at his craft. As coaches, we will do our part in helping him maximize his ability."
Since being drafted 22nd overall in the 2020 draft, Jefferson has been the NFL's most productive receiver.
His 5,899 receiving yards are the most in league history through a player's first four seasons, and his average of 98.3 receiving yards per game are the most in the NFL since 2020.
Over the last four seasons, his 66 receptions of 25 or more yards are nine more than Tyreek Hill for the most in the NFL, and he also has 30 touchdown receptions.
The 2022 AP NFL Offensive Player of the year managed to compile these impressive stats despite missing seven games last season because of a hamstring injury.
Although he sat out nearly half of the 2023 season, he still reached 1,074 receiving yards.
"Over the first four seasons of his career, Justin entrenched himself as the best wide receiver and one of the most electric players in the NFL," Vikings owners Mark and Zygi Wilf said in a statement. "He is a special talent, a committed teammate and an excellent representative of the Vikings. Justin has earned this contract, and we are thrilled he will remain a Minnesota Viking for a very long time."
A three-time Pro Bowler, the 25-year-old Jefferson will now be paired with a new quarterback after Kirk Cousins signed with the Atlanta Falcons in the off-season.
The Vikings drafted J.J. McCarthy 10th overall in this year's draft and also signed former No. 3 pick Sam Darnold in March.
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