CINCINNATI — Desmond Ridder has a new NFL home after spending training camp this season with the Cincinnati Bengals. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported the Bearcats legend is signing with the Minnesota Vikings, who are coincidentally playing the Bengals this week.
Ridder performed poorly for the Bengals across the preseason, but is getting another shot to develop and stick with a team after getting drafted in the historic 2022 Bearcats class.
“You can’t blame anything on [a lack of] reps like that,” Ridder noted to the media about his poor performance against the Colts to close the 2025 preseason. “In this game, in this profession, you gotta be able to put it together when your name is called on, so it doesn’t matter whether you’re getting 10 reps or 100 reps, you gotta be ready to go.”
Ridder is hoping to keep his NFL career alive after a rough couple of seasons in the league. His struggles during training camp and in the preseason with the Bengals sealed his fate in Cincinnati. They moved on from him during final cuts and signed Brett Rypien to the practice squad.
Risser is now on his fifth team after time with the Falcons, Cardinals, Bengals, and Raiders. The Vikings are bringing him in after an injury to starting quarterback J.J. McCarthy, setting Carson Wentz to start this weekend, and Ridder is now his backup.
Rookie quarterback Max Brosmer was the new backup, but he does not have any NFL game experience.
The Atlanta Falcons took Ridder in the third round (74th overall) in the 2022 NFL Draft. He’s thrown 16 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 25 career games and has an 8-10 record as a starter.
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