FLOWERY BRANCH — Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder returned to the starting lineup last week against the Saints and tossed two interceptions to push his total of turnovers up to 14 for the season.
Ridder will be on the hot seat when the Falcons (5-6) face the Jets (4-7) at 1 p.m. Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Ridder has had three games with at least two interceptions this season after not turning the ball over in four starts last season. The Jets are a minus-1 in turnover/takeaway differential, which ranks 17th in the NFL.
“At the end of the day, (I’ve) got to find a better way to take care of the ball,” Ridder said.
Ridder threw one interception where the ball was in front of Bijan Robinson, who could have made a sharper cut. Both were at fault for that throw.
On his interception to Van Jefferson, Ridder should have taken Drake London on the check-down route. He was trying to do too much on that one.
“That second one probably didn’t need to force it, first-and-10, plus-side of the field, just get a positive play,” Ridder said. “You got Drake coming back down to check down come across the field, could’ve checked down there or gave it to the back.”
The Falcons were on the 10-yard line and were likely to score a field goal at least, but the pass to Robinson was intercepted by Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu.
“We just got to be on the same page there with the angle he’s coming out, put a better ball on him,” Ridder said. “It’s all about turnovers. It’s all about the ball. Winning the turnover margin, and that’s something we’ve got to improve on.”
Jets safety Jordan Whitehead has four interceptions.
“The turnover margins, that’s not going to change,” Falcons coach Arthur Smith said. “We went to zero, but that’s not what we want. You like to have the advantage of not turning the ball over. … They do a good job. They can take the ball away. ... We’re playing a fast defense that’s aggressive.
