Michael Penix Jr. Addresses Falcons’ QB Situation After Kirk Cousins’s Four-INT Game

Is it time for Michael Penix Jr. to start in Atlanta?

Penix has thrown for 38 yards on 3-of-5 passing during two appearances this season. / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

While the Atlanta Falcons signed quarterback Kirk Cousins in free agency to steer the team to new heights this season, the future of the franchise is standing on the sidelines holding a clipboard.

Several weeks after signing Cousins to a four-year deal worth $180 million, Atlanta stunned the rest of the NFL by selecting Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 pick in the 2024 NFL draft. Surely, Penix—already 24 years old—wouldn't take Cousins's job for at least another two years.

But after Cousins's nightmarish four-interception game Sunday in the Falcons' 17–13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, that time for Penix to take the starting role could come sooner than later.

"He's a vet," Penix said of Cousins [via ESPN]. "He's been in a lot of different situations, so I have no doubt that he's going to bounce back from this and he's going to be great this weekend and for the rest of the season."

Penix, who went on to praise Cousins's talent and character, is staying ready in case his number is called. Falcons coach Raheem Morris, however, stated there's no quarterback controversy in Atlanta.

"That's not going to be the issue around here," Morris said of a potential quarterback swap on the depth chart. "[Cousins] has carried us. That guy has got us to the point where we are 6–6 and in first place in the division. We've got everything in front of us despite what happened today. It's up to us to bounce back and find a way to win football games.

"There isn't a better man than [Cousins] to go do that for us."

Cousins's next chance to rebound from his poor performance in Atlanta is a matchup Sunday against his former team, the Minnesota Vikings, at U.S. Bank Stadium.

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