The Falcoholic
There is no escaping the gloomy feeling surrounding the Atlanta Falcons. A once-promising season has disintegrated into a demoralizing year of catastrophic losses and franchise-altering consequences. They can’t win close games. They consistently struggle in the third quarter. They can’t find any semblance of consistency offensively. While strides have been made defensively, the unit allows far too many explosive plays. All these problems have culminated in another disastrous season for the franchise.
This roundtable was put together a few days before it was announced that Michael Penix Jr. would need surgery to repair his left ACL. The young quarterback’s play will still be discussed in the latest edition of the monthly roundtable. Other positions and coaches will be analyzed in this lengthy discussion. I am joined by Aaron Freeman, Cory Woodroof, Dave Choate, Adnan Ikic, and Tre’Shon Diaz for this one. If you haven’t read a roundtable before, you can view the discussions from September and October.
Aaron Freeman: I have more concerns at this point. If Penix Jr. possesses a superpower, it centers on his arm strength and vertical passing ability. Yet, that ability was rarely seen this year, and when it was, he proved one of the league’s least efficient vertical passers. Without that strength on display to offset the weaknesses, too many of his flaws were exposed. Those include his ability to create off structure and outside the pocket, his ability to handle pressure, and his comfort level attacking the middle of the field and executing play action.
In his final two starts, we also saw increased inconsistency in his footwork and mechanics, resulting in inaccurate passes. The upside and potential remain high, but it’s hard to say we’re any closer to knowing if he’s the team’s long-term answer at quarterback than we were at the end of last season. There remain too many questions about his viability as an impactful starting quarterback. Questions that, given the uncertainty surrounding his future due to this injury, may remain a ways off from being answered.
Cory Woodroof: I liked what he was at his best. When he got the time from the offensive line and the receivers were able to get separation, he could rip it once he got into a rhythm. His processing looked sharp once he got comfortable. With all the uncertainty surrounding his health, you hope he’s able to build on that if and when he returns.
The tough part with Penix Jr. is that he needs a lot to be going right for him to shine. If he gets knocked off his spot, he tends to struggle in a snowballing effect. He’s a fair-weather quarterback at this point, and it’s unclear if he ever sees the field again for the Falcons. If he quickly recovers, maybe he’ll get the chance to keep that growth moving upward in better...
