The vibes are incredibly high in Flowery Branch, Georgia, where the Falcons have their eyes on the throne of a wide-open NFC South.
Bijan Robinson is going viral with his route running, Desmond Ridder is preparing to take over as the team's starting quarterback, and owner Arthur Blank couldn't be more optimistic about where the Falcons are headed.
"This is the third year of a three-year plan, and I think what I see and what I like a lot is coach (Arthur) Smith and (general manager) Terry Fontenot laid out a very careful, thoughtful, kind of methodical plan of what they were going to do," Blank said Tuesday. "I think we're moving in the right direction. This year I expect our team to be even more competitive, if you will, with the emphasis on the defensive side of the ball during free agency. ... I think we have as many offensive tools as probably most if any team in the NFL today. We've got a lot of talent. Obviously, (an) experienced offensive line that performed at a high level last year. ... I like where we are."
Atlanta's offseason was a productive one, in which the Falcons lured the likes of safety Jessie Bates, defensive tackle David Onyemata and defensive end Calais Campbell to Georgia, where the Falcons previously existed as a team in transition but now have their sights on greater achievements. Atlanta's first-round selection of Robinson added even more juice to their batteries, giving Smith -- best known for directing Titans offenses powered by Derrick Henry -- his best runner to date in Atlanta.
The reasons to be excited are legitimate. But one big question remains: Can Ridder truly become the franchise quarterback the Falcons have needed since parting with Matt Ryan?
"I like our young quarterback," Blank said of Ridder. "People look at just the last four games last year and they say, well, based on those four games, but he really progressed from the time he came on campus here after he was drafted, had a good camp, and he's been a strong leader since he's shown up here. Continued to develop. Worked well with (Marcus) Mariota last year, learned a lot from Marcus. He's a learner, and he's got a lot of humility.
"As the year progressed, he had an opportunity to play, and I think he played at a very competitive level. Those last four games each game seemed to be a little bit better. So, we feel pretty strongly that he's going to be our quarterback of the future. We've got to play games and we've got to see, but we feel good about him."
As a third-round pick, Ridder's arrival didn't come with a ton of fanfare in 2022. It was Mariota's show then, but as it became clear Smith didn't see enough potential in a Mariota-led offense to throw the ball much, inevitably, Ridder rose to the top of the depth chart.
Ridder's results weren't scintillating, but they could be seen as encouraging. He completed 73 of 115 passes for 708 yards, a 2-0 touchdown-to-interception ratio, and a passer rating of 86.4 in four starts. Atlanta won half of those games, finishing with a 7-10 record that left Falcons fans wondering if they'd left a few wins out on the field in 2022.
With the arrival of 2023 comes the start of the Ridder era. His career clock begins ticking now.
As for the rest of the Falcons, the clock is ticking on them, too. Blank referenced a three-year plan set by Smith and Fontenot, and 2023 is Year 3. It's time to produce.
"I think they got us in a position now where our team is gonna be more competitive than it's been the last couple years. I think they'd be disappointed if that wasn't the case, I'd be disappointed, our fans would be disappointed," Blank said. "So I feel good about the direction of where we are. You have to play, you've got to avoid injuries and all that kind of stuff. But we're in a division that is going to be competitive. Everybody says, well it's one of the weakest divisions. But 22 years owning a team in the NFL, you realize that divisions that start out apparently not so strong end up, by the end of the year, being very strong. There's gonna be a lot of competition, but I feel good about where we are.
"I expect us to certainly win more games than we've won the last couple years, and where that puts us and what number that'll be, I'm not sure."
We'll know by the end of the 2023 season. And with no clear favorite existing in the NFC South (Saints fans might claim otherwise), there aren't any excuses for the Falcons this year. If the three-year plan succeeds, it will prove itself in 2023.
