Sportsnaut
The decision has already been highly scrutinized, but now that the results are starting to emerge, the Atlanta Falcons making Michael Penix Jr. the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft is starting to look like a mistake.
Penix hasn’t had much time, but he’s led the Falcons to a 2-4 record thus far. That’s not what they envisioned when they determined he’d be the team’s next franchise quarterback. Last year, Kirk Cousins was the starter. Until he wasn’t.
The Falcons benched Cousins after he led them to a 7-7 record. That came just nine months after they signed him to a four-year, $180 million contract. Yet, on Sunday, after the Falcons fell behind 27-0 to the Panthers, thanks in part to Penix’s two interceptions (including a pick-six), Atlanta turned back to Cousins.
It didn’t lead to anything. The Falcons actually ended up losing 30-0 after Cousins completed 5-of-7 passes for 29 yards, leading to a turnover on downs. Still, for a brief moment, the Falcons felt like giving another quarterback a shot could have created a spark that Penix wasn’t providing.
After he’d completed just 18 of 36 passes (50%) for 172 yards and two interceptions, who can fault the Falcons for trying something different? Yet, some, like Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, feel like Penix has been underwhelming thus far.
Breer isn’t alone. While it is a small sample size of six games, at 25 years old, Penix is the second-oldest of the six-man first-round QB class from 2024. He shouldn’t have needed as much seasoning as, say, J.J. McCarthy, who’s still just 22 years old.
While he certainly has the arm to make all the throws at the NFL level, Penix’s stats are nothing to write home about.
He also hasn’t necessarily shown any growth yet, from his rookie season to now, even after a full offseason and training camp to both learn the offense and build chemistry with his receivers. Not to mention, the Falcons have a star-studded cast of talent, led by two Pro Bowlers (Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson) plus another standout weapon in Drake London.
The Falcons have Penix under contract through 2027; they have the option to gain an additional year of control for 2028, but that depends entirely on his performance. For now, we’d argue that Penix hasn’t shown enough to merit a long-term commitment, but determining a player’s future after just six games wouldn’t be fair either.
At this point, the Falcons must continue to stick by Penix, hoping he can help propel the Falcons’ offense to be a top-ten scoring unit, because they certainly have the talent.
Though, if coach Raheem Morris is simply prioritizing a playoff appearance this...
