Offseason workouts ended for the Falcons, and next up is the start of training camp July 26. One key storyline that has come out of OTAs and the recent minicamp is the competition at quarterback between Marcus Mariota, acquired by the Falcons in March as a free agent, and rookie Desmond Ridder, a third-round pick in the NFL draft in April.

Mariota has been in the NFL since 2015 and worked with Falcons coach Arthur Smith when Smith was an assistant with the Titans. The past two seasons Mariota served as a backup with the Raiders. Both players had success in college. Mariota won the Heisman Trophy in 2014. Ridder took Cincinnati to the College Football Playoff last season, making the Bearcats the first Group of Five school to appear in the CFP.

Tell us which player should start for the Falcons in the season opener, Sept. 11 at home against the Saints.

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Cornerback Keith Taylor was signed to the practice squad by the Falcons on Tuesday. (Atlanta Falcons Twitter)

Credit: Atlanta Falcons Twitter

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Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

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