Tag: michael penix

Michael Penix reveals funny way he learned he was Atlanta’s new starting QB

Michael Penix reveals the funny way he learned he was Atlanta’s new starting QB ahead of Week 16

The Atlanta Falcons ruffled a few feathers when they selected Washington QB Michael Penix with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. After all, they’d just signed veteran Kirk Cousins to a very lucrative free agent deal. Using a top-10 pick on a player who might not play for two seasons was certainly an interesting decision for Atlanta.

That timeline is now accelerated, thanks to Cousins’ repeated issues with ball security and general ineffectiveness. This week, Penix will make his first NFL start for the Falcons against the New York Giants.

Penix found out about the promotion to the starting lineup in an unexpected way–and place.

“I was actually shopping. I was shopping with my girlfriend. We were at Costco and I got the call,” Penix told reporters. “They told me I was going to be the starting quarterback for the rest of the season.”

Penix continued,

“As you can imagine, it was some nerves, It was excitement, but I’m just super blessed to be in this position. Super blessed to be on this team for the opportunity.”

So what was Penix doing at Costco?

“Oh man, so I was actually getting a hotdog and whenever I got the call I wasn’t hungry no more. I was at Costco, I needed groceries.”

The Falcons have set up Penix for success in his first start. He’ll be facing a Giants team that hasn’t won since Week 5 and is allowing the second-highest QB Rating to opponents for the season.

Michael Penix Jr. sees first regular season action amid Falcons blowout loss to Broncos

Michael Penix Jr. sees first regular season action amid Falcons blowout loss to Broncos

It was one of the more unexpected results of the week 11 slate of games as the Denver Broncos absolutely throttled a talented Atlanta Falcons team to the tune of 38-6. Given the state of the game, Atlanta decided to give their rookie quarterback in Michael Penix Jr. some live reps as the game was clearly out of hand.

 

Seeing it was late into the contest, fans caught only a glimpse of their future franchise quarterback, but what was shown was a bit of what everyone saw during Penix’s time in Washington in his explosive arm talent. Ultimately Penix completed 2 of his 4 attempted passes for 24 yards in the closing minutes of the game.

The real question in the midst of this rookie sighting is when fans might see Penix again. The Falcons were not that long ago clear favorites to win the NFC South behind veteran Kirk Cousins, but as the losses begin to pile up in the trainwreck style they have in the last two weeks, one has to wonder if the Falcons may want to see what Penix is capable of with the talent surrounding him. It’s unlikely a swap will happen immediately, but one or two more losses on the record are bound to create a fury of questions and force the hand of the coaching staff to pull the trigger on their first-round quarterback.

Did Jessie Bates take a subtle shot at Bo Nix ahead of Broncos-Falcons game?

Falcons safety Jessie Bates went viral after he said there’s “10 years” of college film of Bo Nix, but that quote needs proper context.

Atlanta Falcons safety Jessie Bates went viral on Friday after aggregation accounts on Twitter/X started re-sharing a video of him saying he’s been watching Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix playing at the college level for the last 10 years.

There’s some context to the quote, though.

Bates started his answer on Nix by saying the Falcons have enough NFL film to study from the QB’s time in the NFL.

“Ten games, usually, that’s enough film to really see a quarterback’s strengths or weaknesses or what they like to do,” Bates said on Friday, via Raphael Haynes of The 3 Point Conversion. “[There’s] kind of multiple years where we can go back and watch what he does. … We’ve been watching him in college for, you know, the past five or six years, however long it was.”

Media members then interjected “Ten years!” with laughter and Bates said, “Ten years, whatever it is.”

It seemed to be a harmless remark from Bates with the “10 years” quip being prompted by media in attendance.

“He’s not [like] a rookie quarterback — seems like he’s a graduate student almost,” Bates continued. “He’s doing a good job … running their offense at a high level.”

The Broncos do not view Nix’s extensive college experience as a negative. Coaches and players both said this offseason that Nix appeared more poised and polished than a typical rookie because of his college experience.

Nix spent five years at the college level before entering the NFL. Atlanta’s rookie quarterback, Michael Penix, spent six years in college.

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Jessie Bates praises Falcons rookie: ‘I know he’ll be ready’

Falcons safety Jessie Bates III expresses confidence in rookie teammate: “I know he’ll be ready”

The Atlanta Falcons addressed their biggest offseason need by signing quarterback Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract. Therefore, it came as a surprise when the team selected quarterback Michael Penix Jr. in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft.

Penix was considered one of the most pro-ready quarterbacks in this year’s draft class, which added to the confusion around Atlanta’s decision. The former Washington Huskies QB has yet to take a regular-season snap and only appeared in one of the team’s three preseason games.

Falcons safety Jessie Bates, whose locker is next to Penix, has been impressed with how the rookie has handled himself thus far. “He’s preparing like a starter would,” Bates said about Penix.

“It’s just cool to see because it’s a weird situation for him, I’m sure, but it’s a huge learning opportunity for him to sit back and see how this whole thing goes instead of just getting thrown out there in the fire.”

“He’s super positive-minded,” Bates continued. “If you know Mike, he’s just a cool dude. Just really don’t say too much but just going against him in scout team, that’s going to make our defense — we’re going against a real deal quarterback. And he’s going against a real deal defense as well. It helps out both ways, and I know he’ll be ready when his time comes.”

After Cousins got off to a slow start, many wondered if the veteran QB was still dealing with the effects of his Achilles injury. However, he has come on strong during Atlanta’s three-game winning streak. In Week 5, Cousins won NFC Offensive Player of the Week with a 500-yard, four-touchdown performance.

Penix had a prolific final season at Washington, leading his team to the National Championship game and passing for 4,906 yards, 36 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

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Sean Payton ‘had a conviction’ about Bo Nix leading up to the draft

The Broncos scouted all of the QBs in the 2024 NFL draft and “we just had a conviction” about Bo Nix, coach Sean Payton said.

Leading up to the 2024 NFL draft, Caleb Williams was the obvious candidate to go first overall and many pundits expected Jayden Daniels to go second overall.

There was also Drake Maye, then a group of quarterbacks including J.J. McCarthy, Bo Nix and Michael Penix. The Denver Broncos‘ staff scouted all of the top QBs in this year’s class, and one stood out.

“We went through that process with all of these guys, and we had a strong conviction [about Nix],” Broncos coach Sean Payton said Wednesday. “Then it’s tuning out the white noise relative to what you’re seeing. [In] 2017, we spent hours on these players. We had a certain grade on [Alvin] Kamara. I felt it wasn’t high enough, I remember just standing up on a chair in the draft room and saying, ‘We have this guy graded.’ There’s kind of this NFL train during the draft that takes place. You don’t know really who’s driving it, and you have to pay attention to it, but you don’t ever want to get on.

“All of those guys during the process did well, whether it was Drake, or J.J., Penix. You spent a lot of time with all of them, and we just had a conviction [about Nix]. His pro-day was on a Friday, and then he had a Saturday workout with us with meetings. We just kept looking at the tape and doing our homework on it.” 

Nix was not considered a top-three QB in this year’s class by pundits, but it certainly seems that the Broncos had him ranked higher than most teams. Payton did not let the opinions of analysts and other clubs change his conviction about Nix.

“I think that’s sometimes one of the challenges during the draft, is it’s harder today to tune out for the scouts and the coaches,” Payton said. “Back in the ’70s or the ’80s, you didn’t — now there is so much information out there that even as an evaluator in the building — the scouts, the GM or a head coach — that you can sometimes hear too much, and you still really have to get back to what are the things you’re looking for? That can vary by team, and that’s good. There’s nothing wrong with that, but that was kind of the process.”

In the end, Payton picked Nix, and the quarterback went on to impress this summer before being named the starter ahead of the 2024 season. Nix ended up being the sixth QB taken in April’s draft, but Payton has implied he was the target all along. We’ll see how his career stacks up against the five other first-round QBs in the coming years.

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Michael Penix Jr. set to sit in Falcons’ final preseason game against Jaguars

Penix is healthy but sitting behind Kirk Cousins in the regular season, so it’s strange Atlanta won’t even play their first-rounder in the preseason

There has been quite frankly a lot of questions about the Atlanta Falcons decision making in the front office and by extension coaching staff ever since they took quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with the eight overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. That trend of odd decisions is apparently continuing as Penix is set to sit his second straight preseason game after only appearing briefly in Week 1.

Now, it’s hard to blame any NFL team for their decision-making when it comes to playing or resting particular players during the preseason process, as each time has their own preferences. It just comes off as a bit odd, given that we will likely not see Penix play at all this season, and the preseason is a nice opportunity to get the rookie some live snaps.

Atlanta, of course, sees Penix in practice every day and must be comfortable with where he stands in his development, but it certainly is a bit of a disappointment to the fans who hoped to see more of their new franchise quarterback. If all things go well in Atlanta, the next time we see Penix should be next years preseason contests.

WATCH: Every throw from Falcons rookie QB Michael Penix’s debut

WATCH: Every throw from Falcons rookie QB Michael Penix Jr.’s preseason debut

The Falcons got their first look at quarterback Michael Penix Jr. on Friday night. After a slow start, the offense came alive and Penix led the team on a touchdown drive.

The rookie finished the game with 104 passing yards and made some impressive throws in the first half. With Kirk Cousins entering the season as the uncontested starter, the preseason may be the only time we see Penix this year.

However, the rookie is already making the preseason more enjoyable to watch. Check out every throw from Penix’s professional debut, as shared by the team’s Twitter account below:

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Falcons vs. Dolphins: Best photos from Friday’s preseason opener

Falcons vs. Dolphins: Best photos from Friday’s preseason opener

The Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins held two joint practice sessions this week before facing off in Friday night’s preseason opener. The Dolphins held on for a 20-13 win despite a late drive from Nathan Rourke and the Falcons.

Quarterback Michael Penix, Ruke Orhorhoro, and the rest of the team’s draft class debuted Friday night in Miami. Check out the best photos from Week 1 of the preseason below:

 

Falcons QB Michael Penix shows promise in preseason loss to Dolphins

Falcons rookie QB Michael Penix made some nice throws in Friday’s preseason loss to the Miami Dolphins

The Atlanta Falcons opened the preseason with a 20-13 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Friday evening. While the game was competitive until the end, it was overshadowed by two potentially serious injuries to safety DeMarcco Hellams and linebacker Bralen Trice.

On the bright side, Falcons rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. was solid in his preseason debut. The No. 8 pick in this year’s draft completed nine of 16 pass attempts for 104 yards, including a 41-yard completion to wide receiver Chris Blair.

Penix marched the team down the field following an interception by cornerback Kevin King and running back Carlos Washington capped off the drive with a fourth-down touchdown run. It wasn’t a perfect performance by the rookie, but he showcased his quick release and accuracy with a couple of nice passes in the first half.

“I was pretty pleased with Michael,” Falcons head coach Raheem Morris told the sideline reporter before heading to the locker room. While Penix was solid on Friday night, Atlanta’s other two quarterbacks struggled.

Nathan Rourke and Taylor Heinicke combined for seven completions on 24 attempts for 48 total passing yards. Rourke deserves some credit for nearly leading the team to a game-tying touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

The Falcons also failed to run the ball with much consistency, finishing with just 81 yards on 31 attempts. Rookie Jase McClellan led the way with nine carries for 30 rushing yards.

Atlanta’s defense didn’t have a terrible day, however, the team gave up some big plays and failed to record a sack. Overall, it was an underwhelming game but Penix was a bright spot.

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Analyst offers bleakly stark assessment of Michael Penix’s rookie prospects with the Falcons

Yahoo’s Charles Robinson came away from Falcons training camp with a bleak outlook for 1st-round QB Michael Penix as a rookie

When the Atlanta Falcons drafted Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, it sent shudders and gasps across the NFL landscape. The Falcons had just made a huge commitment to veteran Kirk Cousins, after all, and Atlanta is not blessed with the breadth of talent to sacrifice a first-round pick on a player who doesn’t appear to have a path to immediate playing time.

Four months later, it’s playing out exactly in the way most analysts expected: Penix might be pretty good, but we might not see it matter anytime soon. That’s the verdict from Yahoo’s Charles Robinson after he spent some time watching Penix, Cousins and the Falcons during a training camp visit.

Despite Penix throwing “sharp, effortless passes against the Falcons’ first-team defense,” Robinson doesn’t see Penix getting any meaningful action in the regular season. It’s the Kirk Cousins show in Atlanta, with Robinson noting how high the Falcons are on their veteran acquisition.

“Dial in the preseason, because this is geared to be your only shot to see him against an opponent in 2024,” Robinson wrote about Penix in his post on X (formerly Twitter).

It’s a bleak reality check for Falcons fans who are (rightly) excited about Penix’s potential, knowing that a team expected to contend for a division title won’t get anything out of its first-round pick with so many immediately useful players still on the board.