Wide receiver Calvin Ridley did not play for the Atlanta Falcons in their 19-13 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. And after the former Alabama standout issued a statement about his absence, it’s not clear when he might play for the Falcons again.
“These past few weeks have been very challenging,” stated a post on Ridley’s Twitter account, “and as much as I’d like to be on the field competing with my teammates, I need to step away from football at this time and focus on my mental wellbeing. This will help me be the best version of myself now and in the future.
“I want to thank my teammates, the entire Atlanta Falcons organization, our great fans, my friends and my family for all of their support during this time.”
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Sunday’s contest was the second this season missed by Ridley. He didn’t accompany the Falcons to London for their Oct. 10 game against the New York Jets.
When Atlanta returned to the field after their bye week on Oct. 24, Ridley caught four passes for 26 yards and one touchdown in a 30-28 victory over the Dolphins in Miami.
In between London and Miami, Ridley told reporters he understood why fans would be interested in why he missed the game, but he declined to provide details.
“For me personally, it shouldn’t matter because – mind your business,” Ridley said. “But, in today’s world, yeah, I do. To me, I don’t think it should. If I say it’s personal, it’s personal.”
Atlanta coach Arthur Smith indicated in his postgame comments that the Falcons were not aware Ridley would not play against the Panthers until Sunday morning.
“I believe he put out a statement,” Smith said, “and so I’ll let Calvin speak for himself. It’s a personal issue. Again, I’m not going into any details. When we realized he wasn’t going to go this morning, we made him inactive. …
“Calvin’s dealing with something personal, and it’s going to remain personal on my end. Calvin’s statement speaks for him, and so when we got in here today, we talked, and we put him on inactive.”
A first-round choice in the 2018 NFL Draft, Ridley had 217 receptions for 3,061 yards and 26 touchdowns in his first three NFL seasons, and after a 90-catch, 1,374-yard showing in 2020, a monster year was expected from him after the Falcons traded Julio Jones to the Tennessee Titans during the offseason.
In five games this season, Ridley has 31 receptions for 281 yards and two touchdowns.
“It’s like any other injury,” Smith said about Ridley’s absence. “It’s like when we got on that plane to London. We got to find a way to win. We got to find a way to execute better offensively. There’s no excuses. It’s the NFL. Injuries come up, things come up, and we got to find a way.”
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
