Falcons’ Calvin Ridley, Russell Gage return to practice field

The Atlanta Falcons took care of business against the New York Jets in Week 5 despite being without starting receivers Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage. In their absence, rookie tight end Kyle Pitts had a nine-catch, 119-yard performance to lead the Falcons to a win in London.

After a bye in Week 6, Atlanta returns to the field in Week 7 for a meeting with the Miami Dolphins. On Monday, the team announced that Ridley would return to practice after sitting out due to personal reasons last Sunday.

Ridley, 26, is in the fourth year of his rookie contract since being drafted in the first round out of Alabama in 2018. When the Falcons traded Julio Jones over the offseason, most assumed that meant Ridley would take his game to new heights. Over the first few weeks, that hasn’t happened, though.

Ridley has 27 catches for 255 yards and one touchdown in the four games he’s played in this season. While those are certainly respectable numbers, we expect things to finally start clicking for the speedy wideout over the remainder of the season.

Atlanta’s offensive line was abysmal during the first two games of 2021, but the group has shown slight improvement each week and that might be all it takes for Ridley to start looking like his old self again.

As for Russell Gage and Marlon Davidson, both players are practicing as well, which is a great sign going into Sunday’s game against Miami.

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