Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Desmond Ridder (4) celebrates a touchdown run in the second quarter of the NFL Preseason Week 3 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Indianapolis Colts at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati on Saturday, Aug. 23, 2025. The Colts led 24-7 at halftime. Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Desmond Ridder Reflects on Bengals Training Camp As Roster Cuts Near

Originally posted on Cincinnati Bengals on SI
By Russell Heltman | Last updated Aug 23, 2025 5:53 PM ET

Desmond Ridder got his chance to prove worthy of a Bengals roster spot on Saturday in a 41-14 loss to the Colts. The veteran quarterback closed out the preseason going 8-of-20 passing for 75 yards, one interception, and one rushing touchdown.

He won't be the Bengals' backup entering the season after Jake Browning firmly maintained that role, but could stick around on the practice squad.

"You can't blame anything on reps like that," Ridder noted to the media about his poor performance. "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 held a 63.9 Pro Football Focus grade entering the contest as he battled for a roster spot in his fourth NFL season.

Cincinnati also has Payton Thorne in the quarterback room.

"I hope I'm here on Tuesday," Ridder said about roster cuts. "That means I got a job, that means we're working to be better. But at the end of the day, that's not my decision. I did what I did and put what I put on film. So they got to go evaluate that and then make a decision."

Cincinnati trims down to a 53-man roster in a few days.