ClutchPoints
As a longtime Atlanta Falcons quarterback who has been through the ups and downs of a long career, Matt Ryan feels for Kirk Cousins in his current situation. However, as a true Falcons lifer, Ryan believes the team made the right decision by drafting Michael Penix Jr. with their 2024 first-round pick.
While acknowledging that the situation is “difficult” for Cousins, Ryan stated that the Falcons had to make the Penix decision based on the current landscape of the quarterback position. The former quarterback-turned-analyst believed Atlanta needed to address the position early due to the lack of depth in the 2025 and 2026 draft classes.
“I think Kirk coming in thinking he had a four or five-year runway to play there, and then them going in a different direction was probably difficult for him,” Ryan said on ‘The Dan Patrick Show.’ “But I get the organizational standpoint, because I do think, when you look at last year’s draft, the depth of that quarterback position and then projecting forward, what the next two or three drafts are going to look like and hoping that you’re not in a position to draft early — it’s the position you got to take care of.”
Ryan spent 14 years with the Falcons after they took him third overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. Despite being arguably the greatest quarterback in franchise history, he suffered a similar fate to Cousins when Atlanta traded him in the 2022 offseason. The team sent a then-36-year-old Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts and subsequently drafted Desmond Ridder one month later.
Fans are well aware that the Ridder selection did not pan out, forcing Atlanta into its current predicament. Ridder lasted just two seasons with the team before the Falcons closed that chapter and ushered in the new Cousins-Penix era.
Not only does Ryan believe drafting a quarterback was the right decision, but he also thinks the Falcons found their guy with Penix. Though the selection was a surprise in multiple facets — Penix was not projected to be taken until late in round one before Atlanta took him at No. 9 — Ryan believes his on-field results have been encouraging thus far.
“If you’re defending the Falcons, which, you know, I’m biased because I played there so long and root for them. You have to get that position right. And when you’ve got the opportunity to acquire somebody who I think is really talented, I think Michael Penix has a lot of talent, and I think he played really well at the end of the year. You got to do it.”
Penix went just 1-2 in his three starts as a rookie, but led the offense to average 32 points per game. He ended the year on a high note, throwing for 312 yards, two touchdowns and one interception against the Carolina Panthers in Week 18.
The post Matt Ryan defends Falcons stance on Kirk Cousins decision...
