Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris benched beginning quarterback Kirk Cousins in favor of rookie Michael Penix Jr. final week, and Penix finally guided the membership to a simple 34-7 win over the lowly New York Giants (2-13) this previous Sunday.
Whereas Penix’s efficiency towards New York wasn’t essentially the most dynamic, ESPN’s Ben Solak famous in a chunk revealed Tuesday that the 24-year-old accomplished all 11 of his move makes an attempt between the numbers for 130 yards in his first NFL begin.
“The Falcons’ offense was able to taking a right away leap with Penix on the helm due to his capacity to maneuver and drive the soccer — two key elements of quarterbacking that Cousins bodily lacked after an Achilles damage and down the lengthy stretch of the season,” Solak defined.
Cousins appeared like a shell of his greatest self as he tossed one landing move and 9 interceptions over his previous 5 video games, 4 of which had been losses earlier than Morris moved to Penix. Penix accomplished 18-of-27 passes for 202 yards with no scores and one choose that wasn’t his fault towards the Giants.
No matter whether or not or not Cousins has a “lifeless” arm associated to the torn Achilles he suffered in October 2023, it now seems he’ll be a spectator by means of the top of the season so long as Penix stays wholesome.
“Penix was precisely what he was billed as out of faculty: a giant pocket passer keen to set off quick and make aggressive throws,” Solak added.
In the meantime, former NFL signal-caller and present analyst Chase Daniel of The Athletic stated on the newest “Scoop Metropolis” podcast that Penix “performed a flawless sport” towards Large Blue.
Each the Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers head into Christmas at 8-7, however first-place Atlanta defeated Tampa Bay twice earlier within the season. Penix is already 1-0 in must-win video games relating to his workforce’s pursuit of a playoff berth, however he’ll face a a lot more durable problem when the Falcons play on the 10-5 Washington Commanders this coming Sunday night time.
As of Tuesday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Atlanta as a four-point underdog for that prime-time showdown.
