Calvin Ridley reinstated: NFL world reacts to Jaguars’ newest weapon

March 7, 2023 ndowd

Former Falcons wideout Calvin Ridley’s back, tell a friend. The Jacksonville Jaguars’ offense is going to be something else this year.

Hooray! The lamest suspension in the history of the NFL is finally over. The return of Jacksonville Jaguars’ wideout Calvin Ridley should have even the most average football fan jumping in the air.

So Ridley bet on a few games — other NFL players have gotten away with much worse for far less.

Ridley was officially reinstated on Monday after the NFL dealt him a one-year suspension for gambling on NFL games. The 2018 first-round pick by the Atlanta Falcons hasn’t played since October of 2021, when he decided to take a break from football to focus on his mental health. During that span, Ridley placed a few illegal bets and ended up getting suspended for the 2022 season.

Last November, Atlanta traded Ridley to the Jaguars for a fourth- and sixth-rounder, and the rest is history. History that’s being written right now, anyway.

In 2023, Ridley joins one of the most promising young offenses in the league, getting to play alongside Trevor Lawrence, Travis Etienne, Evan Engram, and Christian Kirk, among others. If a few bad bets is all it took to land on this star-studded roster, there’s a good chance Ridley would do it again.

Jacksonville became the comeback kids of the 2022 season after beating out the Tennessee Titans for the division title and narrowly losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs. Adding a speedy wideout like Ridley makes the Jaguars much more dangerous, and with Trevor Lawrence growing into one of the NFL’s most impressive precision-passers, Ridley has the potential to exceed his 2020 numbers when he posted 90 catches for 1,300-plus yards.

The AFC South should be scared. The rest of the league should be scared. Here’s how the NFL world reacted to Calvin Ridley’s highly anticipated return.

Jaguars’ offense is a cheat code with forgotten talent Calvin Ridley

Welcome back, Calvin Ridley. [This message is brought you by Caesers, the official casino sponsor of the NFL]

— Melissa Jacobs (@thefootballgirl) March 6, 2023

In honor of Calvin Ridley’s reinstatement, I’m going to place a future on him winning Comeback Player of the Year. https://t.co/CSx7I9ARkq

— Dusty Harrah (@Dusty_Harrah) March 6, 2023

A reminder that the Jaguars’ under-the-radar move to acquire Calvin Ridley at the trade deadline was the shrewdest of all the trade deadline moves.

— Dan Graziano (@DanGrazianoESPN) March 6, 2023

Plenty of folks can’t wait to bet on the shiny new Jaguars wideout for obvious reasons. We, for one, just want to see karmic justice and want someone to place a massive bet on Ridley becoming the 2023 Comeback Player of the Year.

Ridley honestly couldn’t have returned from exile at a better time. The Jacksonville Jaguars are coming in hot in 2023 after enjoying a breakthrough season aided by a coaching staff cleansed of Urban Meyer’s rank stench. Lawrence, Etienne, and Ridley are the new kids on the block, and they’re coming to steal the AFC’s candy.

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