JACKSONVILLE — While NFL exhibition games generally are mundane affairs, they are extremely vital for backup quarterbacks.
Once the regular season starts, the backups will not get many plays in practice, yet they must be ready to lead the team on a moment’s notice. The exhibition season is the time for backup quarterbacks to sharpen their skills.
That’s why Chris Redman is elated about playing extensively against the Jaguars at 8 p.m. Friday at EverBank Field.
He’s set to come on in relief of starting quarterback Matt Ryan. Redman likely will be followed by Adam Froman. John Parker Wilson, the team’s No. 3 quarterback, has a concussion and likely won’t play.
“I’m excited about getting back out there,” Redman said. “I got a little taste of it when I got out there for one play last week. I’m ready to get in the flow of a game and get back into playing shape.”
Most football prognosticators have picked the Falcons as favorites to defend their NFC South title and battle Green Bay and Philadelphia for supremacy in the NFC.
But there is a thin line between winning and losing if a team’s starting quarterback goes down. That’s why Redman looks forward to his exhibition action.
Redman knows that if something happens to Ryan, the team’s standards and expectations will shift to his shoulders.
In 2003, the Falcons were fresh off a playoff victory over Green Bay in Lambeau Field and had some longshot Super Bowl buzz heading into Michael Vick’s second season as the full-time starter.
But things changed in an exhibition game against the Baltimore Ravens.
Vick was scrambling to his right. When he tried to cut left, linebacker Adalius Thomas tackled him from the left, collaring Vick by the neck. Vick suffered a fractured fibula, and the Falcons’ promising season was over before it started.
Backup Doug Johnson went 1-7 as a starter, and Kurt Kittner went 1-3. Vick came back to play in the final five games. He posted a 3-1 record as a starter. But that wasn’t enough to save Dan Reeves from being fired.
The moral of that Vick story is that teams must have capable backup quarterbacks, ones who can keep the train rolling down the tracks if disaster strikes.
Redman stepped in admirably for Ryan during the 2009 season when he suffered a turf-toe injury. Redman rallied the Falcons to victory over Tampa Bay before dropping games to Philadelphia and New Orleans. However, he was ready for the Super Bowl-bound Saints and won over the coaching staff while passing for 303 yards.
Redman understands the importance of work in the exhibition season.
“This is the time to get better for a backup quarterback because you’re going to get more reps in camp,” Redman said. “You need to go out and get your reps now, because when the season starts your reps diminish tremendously.”
Redman hopes to get some rare time with the first-team receivers.
“We are just trying to go out there and get better mentally, learn these new receivers and then, when it’s your time to play, you have to do the best with your mental reps,” Redman said. “That’s part of being a backup.”
In the exhibition opener, Wilson was 12-of-19 for 111 yards and one interception against Miami. Froman had a chance to drive the offense down for the victory, but he threw an interception.
“They are both doing well,” Redman said. “For Froman to come in and pick up this offense, it’s one of the more complicated offenses in the league, I think he’s done an outstanding job.”
Wilson hopes to get clearance from the NFL’s concussion protocol in time to play in the fourth exhibition game. He may not get to play in the third because the starters will play longer, and Redman likely will get the extra work.
“You have to be ready, no matter what happens and not have a drop off if something does happen,” Wilson said. “We try to go in and play just like if we were starting. That’s the way you have to take it.”
