The Atlanta Falcons are in no hurry to start rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr.
The Falcons signed quarterback Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million deal, then drafted Penix with the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Since Cousins has struggled this year and the Falcons lost control of first place in the NFC South after losing last week versus the Minnesota Vikings, calls have increased to start Penix. Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said that while he is the future of the franchise, the team has no plans to start him.
In that same answer, Morris stressed that while his decision does not have to do with a lack of belief in the backup quarterback—Penix—he is a rookie.
“We do have a plan, and we have had a plan from the beginning on how we want to utilize and be able to play our rookie when it’s time,” said Morris.
“For me, it’s the ultimate encouragement and backing for my building and for my state of the union to go out there and support [Cousins],” Morris continued. “So, to say benching doesn’t cross your mind, you’ve always got to consider those things if you feel like it’s something that’s irreparable or whatever the case may be. I don’t feel that way. I feel like he’s gonna come out of this thing and is gonna go on a run here and get us to do the things we need to do.”
The next reporter asked Morris what the plan for Penix was.
“I told you right from the beginning, he’s our future,” the head coach answered. “Day one, down here, the hardest draft meeting, when the unexpected thing happened, we [took] Michael Penix with the eighth overall pick, and our future’s getting ready. And for our future to go out there and be preparing the way he’s preparing, and be the solid human he’s been throughout the whole process, and to be able to have the respect, to be able to have the confidence, to be able to have the wherewithal to support Kirk in all this stuff, too, it’s a great learning lesson for him as well. So, when you go through all that process, you can look at different organizations [that have] pulled the trigger and put guys out there too early and it’s gone terrible, and I don’t want to be that guy.”
The reporter then asked if putting Penix in as a starter now would be good reps for him. “I don’t know that,” Morris responded. “None of us do. But I do know the plan that I have and what I want to do for that young man.”
The Falcons shocked the NFL world after making an apparent long-term commitment to Cousins, allegedly engaging in tampering before the legal period, then spending a top-10 pick on Penix. The team did not notify Cousins beforehand, and he did not learn of the pick until it was broadcast on draft night. Cousins and Penix talked afterward and agreed to help make the locker room work.
Cousins is recovering from an Achilles tear he suffered in 2023 and has struggled to lead the offense. While he has thrown for 3,396 yards and 17 touchdowns, he has also thrown 15 interceptions. The Falcons have also suffered from poor defensive play: Atlanta ranks 23rd in total defense. As a result, the Falcons currently sit at 6-7 and in second place in the NFC South.
