ESPN, Former No. 1 Pick Rips Fontenot, Falcons 'Organizational Disaster'

Former No. 1 overall pick Alex Smith takes issue with how the Atlanta Falcons spent their resources in the offseason.

The Atlanta Falcons got 14 starts for $90-million out of Kirk Cousins. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Former No. 1 overall pick, 16 year NFL veteran, three-time Pro Bowl quarterback, and 2020 Comeback Player of the Year Alex Smith unloaded on the Atlanta Falcons brass during his segment on ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown. 

He took issue with how the Falcons addressed the quarterback position in the offseason and how they have now handicapped Michael Penix Jr. with the albatross of Kirk Cousins's contract.

Alex Smith on ESPN calling out The Falcons organization. Basically calling Terry Fontenot and Arthur Blank Dumb and Dumber. pic.twitter.com/wtBWTGW3C3

— ✈️CJB✈️ (@JB80s) January 5, 2025

“I don’t know why the vibes would be good in Atlanta right now, because from my perspective, this is an organizational disaster,” Smith said. “In the last calendar year your personnel department went out and thought Kirk Cousins was good enough to give a $180-Million contract, then you spent a top ten pick on a quarterback and now after 14 games you’ve changed your mind.” 

Drafting Michael Penix Jr. isn't necessarily an issue, but if the Falcons were targeting a quarterback in the first round, dumping $90-million guaranteed into a bridge to the future was a colossal overpay. The Falcons roster wasn't good enough to ignore impact players on defense and make a legimate playoff run with Cousins.

Smith didn’t stop there, even paying homage to Michael Penix Jr. while simultaneously pointing out flaws in the bigger picture.

“You thrust this kid in, and again I think he has a bright future, but with three games left you’re in the middle of a division race and there is no time to develop," Smith continued. "The truth is, he (Penix) missed 10-12 throws last week (vs. Washington). There was zero margin for error and that was unfair to put on the kid.”

Had the Falcons committed to Penix from the beginning, including getting reps on the preseason, he would have been sharper late in the season and helped avoid the Falcons 2-6 finish.

“The reality, you paid Kirk Cousins 90 million dollars for 14 games," said Smith. "He has a $40 Million cap hit next year ($65-million across two years). The ramifications of this are going to echo into next season. This is what dysfunction looks like. (Penix) future is bright, but at the same time, this is a catastrophe. This division was wide open. You have the most talented team in the division and let it all go from lack of plan.”

The counter-argument is that the Falcons did have a plan. Win now with Cousins before handing the reins to Penix.

That's a poor use of resources for a team coming off three-consecutive seven-win seasons. The defense wasn't good enough to win now.

The Minnesota Vikings were in a similar situation as the Falcons heading into 2024. They elected to let Cousins walk, draft his replacement, sign a bridge quarterback, and sunk their savings into the defense.

The Vikings struck gold with Sam Darnold for one-year, $10 million. No one saw that coming, but they drafted their quarterback of the future in J.J. McCarthy at No. 10. They added edge rusher Dallas Turner later in the first after signing free agent defenders Jonathan Greenard ($38 million), Blake Cashman ($15 million) and Andrew Van Ginkel ($10 million).

That's a plan.

For $73-million guaranteed, the Vikings got a Pro Bowl bridge quarterback, 250 tackles, and 28 sacks.

For $90-million guaranteed, the Falcons got 14 games from Kirk Cousins, one more win, lost a fifth round draft pick for tampering, and $65 million in dead money pending.

The bright side is hitting on a rookie quarterback can overcome a lot of financial malpractice. But $65 million in dead money, even spread across two years, would go a long way towards building a defense to support Penix in a way the Falcons never did for Matt Ryan.