Falcons’ Offensive Woes Might Bring Back Controversial Former All-Pro
Posted October 5, 2025
Bring him home!
The Atlanta Falcons' offense shined in Week 4, but the offense still has yet to display the consistency fans have been hoping for in 2025. Michael Penix Jr.'s career day against the Commanders and Zac Robinson's move to the sidelines were awfully promising, but the name of the game is now doing whatever possible to get the most out of Penix.
With Darnell Mooney nursing a hamstring injury, the Dirty Birds lack true receiver depth behind London—and an upgrade at WR2 is something Terry Fontenot should look into. The most ideal option was Dolphins star wideout Tyreek Hill, but the eight-time Pro Bowler tore multiple ligaments in his knee in Week 4, ending his season.
Wide receiver remains a need, and names like Jakobi Meyers, Christian Kirk, and Romeo Doubs have been among those linked to Atlanta. However, an additional name stands out—a reunion with former Falcons first-rounder Calvin Ridley—who has struggled in Tennessee.
Calvin Ridley could be the answer to the Falcons' wide receiver woes
After recording 1,017 yards and four scores in 2024, the 30-year-old receiver has amassed just 10 receptions for 141 yards in 2025. And with the Titans sitting at 0-4, they could look to move on from Ridley to open up more playing time for rookies Elic Ayomanor and Chimere Dike.
The former Alabama standout is amid the second season of a four-year $92 deal signed during the 2024 offseason. The expectation was that he would make No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward's transition to the NFL far easier, but instead, Tennessee's offense has imploded.
The Titans are second to last in total offense, last in passing offense, and are averaging under 13 points per game, which has Brian Callahan firmly on the hot seat after the first month. There's a real opportunity Ridley is moved before the Trade Deadline, and Atlanta makes sense as a landing spot.
After establishing himself as the team's long-term WR1 after Julio Jones was traded, Ridley's breakup with the Falcons was ugly, He stepped away from the team in 2021 citing mental heath reasons, and was suspended for all of 2022 for gambling before eventually being traded to Jacksonville.
The former All-Pro has remained a high-level contributor, surpassing the 1,000-yard threshold in back-to-back seasons. The big hiccup with any potential Ridley deal is his $28 million cap hit in 2025, but since the Titans have plenty of cap space, they would likely take on some of the salary if a trade is agreed to.
With Tennessee amid a rebuild, it wouldn't take more than a late Day 3 pick for Terry Fontenot to make a reunion happen. The question would be if Fontenot and Raheem Morris would want to deal with the baggage that comes with Ridley, but the opportunity to pursue an upgrade is clear.
Jalen Hurts poses dual-threat problem for Broncos defense
Saquon Barkley is a problem enough for the Denver Broncos defense.
But when you throw in Jalen Hurts as a dual-threat quarterback, that makes the Philadelphia Eagles offense that much tougher to defend. Hurts is capable of beating defenses with his arm or his legs. Yes, the Eagles are experiencing some drama with their receivers at the moment, and A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith have been underutilized in a bizarre way. But it’s all just a matter of one game.
All that matters is that Philadelphia wins games. The Eagles are now 20-1 in their last 21 games and 18-0 in their last 18 games started and finished by Hurts.
Now the Broncos will need to find a way to contain Hurts and that dual-threat ability today.
“How we rush this guy is obviously key,” Broncos defense coordinator Vance Joseph said to the media this week. “If everyone’s covered and you have irresponsible rush lanes, (Hurts) will take off and gain the first down, and you’ll never see third-and-long or second-and-long ever. If you don’t contain the quarterback, I think he’s an accurate passer, but when he pulls the ball down, if everyone’s back is turned, he can make a big play on it.
“How we rush him is important. How we stop Saquon is important. They have a lot of weapons that we have to account for, but the quarterback is obviously the main guy. That’s where it starts.”
One of the best ways for the Broncos to slow down Hurts and the Eagles’ offense is to control the ball and time of possession. That starts with a consistent and effective running game.
If J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey get going, that spells success for Denver. It starts by achieving success in the running game early.
“I think that’s just a constant in football,” Broncos offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said to the media this week. “When you’re able to run the ball efficiently, it helps everything. I know when you’re calling plays and the run game’s effective, it feels a lot easier than when it’s not. I think both of our runners are averaging over five (yards) a carry, and it’s something that we have confidence in and we’ll lean on going forward for sure.”
Lombardi added that splitting series is how the Broncos envisioned using Dobbins and Harvey based on their differing skill sets as runners.
“They’re really good runners, they’re both effective as pass catchers, both effective as blockers,“ Lombardi said. ”I think getting RJ, making sure that we’re confident that he has the protections down, not physically, but just mentally. He came along quickly with that. I think it’s something we feel good about going forward.”
How successful Denver is in running the ball today will go a long way in helping the defense at least slow down Hurts and the high-flying capability of the Eagles offense.
But as Hurts and Philly have shown, they don’t need much to be dangerous.
