The first text Desmond Ridder sent upon learning the Raiders were interested in signing him Monday night was to Tre Tucker, his former college teammate at Cincinnati and a second-year wide receiver with the Raiders.
“He thought I was joking,” the Raiders’ newest quarterback said Wednesday.
A day later, the Raiders (2-5) made it official by poaching Ridder from the Arizona Cardinals’ practice squad to replace Aidan O’Connell, who suffered a fractured thumb Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams.
As soon as the deal went down, Ridder hit Tucker up again. Only this time to ask if he could crash at his place when he got to Las Vegas.
“I think he knew it was pretty real,” Ridder said, laughing.
As far as the spare room, it’s a work in progress.
“He still hasn’t got back to me on that,” Ridder said. “So I’m at a hotel right now. But we’re working on it.”
So goes the sometimes transient world of the NFL, which was on full display Wednesday when the worlds of three Raiders quarterbacks intersected within seconds of each other.
Ridder as he spoke to the media for the first time. O’Connell as he hustled out of the locker room, his right thumb heavily bandaged. And Gardner Minshew, who now gets a second chance to hang onto the starting job, knowing full well his penchant for turning the ball over could mean the Raiders hand the keys to Ridder as his replacement.
“Been a little whirlwind,” Ridder said.
A new start
Ridder, a third-round pick by the Atlanta Falcons in 2022, arrives in Las Vegas with 17 starts. A big, strong-armed quarterback, he threw for 2,836 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions in 13 starts with the Falcons last year. He also ran for 193 yards, five touchdowns, and 18 first downs.
His Atlanta career abruptly ended when the Falcons signed Kurt Cousins in free agency. Not long after, Ridder was traded to Arizona for wide receiver Rondale Moore. After getting beat out by Clayton Tune as Kyler Murray’s backup, Ridder was released by the Cardinals but immediately brought back as a member of their practice squad.
That is where he remained until the Raiders came calling.
“I’m just excited to go out there, excited to have the opportunity to play football again,” Ridder said.
For now, he will compete with rookie Carter Bradley for the backup job behind Minshew. Depending on how quickly Ridder picks up the offense, that could happen as early as Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs at Allegiant Stadium.
The Raiders are not thinking too far beyond that.
“I’ll be honest, I’ve got my hands full right now with Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes,” Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said. “Worrying about the future is not really what I’m thinking about right now, to be honest. It’s really getting him up to speed. He’s a bright-eyed kid, very smart, very sharp. Fits in well with the room. I’m excited to see him at practice, see what he can do.”
Short leash?
Things could change quickly depending on how Minshew plays from here on out.
Two weeks ago, the Raiders benched the turnover-prone Minshew in favor of O’Connell. Then, when called upon to replace an injured O’Connell against the Rams, Minshew threw three more interceptions and coughed up a fumble that was returned for a touchdown in a 20-15 loss.
Whatever remaining rope he has to work with figures to be limited with the Raiders reeling after three straight losses.
None of this needs to be explained to Minshew, whose 10 turnovers are tied for most in the NFL.
“We got to protect the ball this week,” he said.
Mired in the worst turnover slump of his career, he continues to search for answers. An easy one is toeing the line between trying to make a big play with an aggressive throw into coverage and just safely throwing it away.
Or, as Pierce put it: “Just play another down, allow us to punt, whatever it may be.”
“That’s something I can do a better job of,” Minshew said. “I think you have to look at every interception, every play individually, and see what you’re doing wrong there.”
If not, Ridder might get on the field sooner rather than later.
Contact Vincent Bonsignore at [email protected]. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on X.
Up next
Who: Raiders vs. Chiefs
When: 1:25 p.m. Sunday
Where: Allegiant Stadium
TV: CBS
Radio: KRLV-AM (920), KOMP-FM (92.3)
Line: Chiefs -10; total 41½
