Atlanta Falcons QB situation ‘normalized’ according to SI

The Atlanta Falcons shocked everyone, including quarterback Kirk Cousins, when they selected Michael Penix Jr. with the 8th overall pick in the NFL Draft.

However, once the initial shock wore off, the situation “normalized,” according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. Breer credits the quarterbacks themselves for making what could have been a sticky situation seem like the status quo in Atlanta.

“Yes, things were a little awkward after Michael Penix Jr. was drafted, and Kirk Cousins ​​became aware of his new situation in real time,” Breer wrote. “What got Atlanta through a tough situation, after it calmed down, was the quarterbacks.

“Penix’s maturity, humility and emotional intelligence allowed the rookie to take a tactful approach in what was a fairly unusual entry into the NFL for a first-round quarterback. Cousins, for his part, did what he’s done throughout his career (and he’s been in trickier situations than this before) by taking the high road.

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Breer probably wasn’t surprised to learn that Penix, as well as Cousins, handled the situation maturely. He reported after the draft that one of the reasons the Falcons took Penix was his willingness to learn behind Cousins… something JJ McCarthy seemed less inclined to do.

“(Drake) Maye’s camp refused to do a workout with the Falcons because they were certain he would be eliminated by the Falcons’ pick at No. 8, and McCarthy’s team canceled theirs, watching the landscape and seeing Cousins’ presence as making Atlanta a less realistic and less ideal landing spot,” Breer wrote after the draft.

Maye’s camp was okay in that he went at #3 to the New England Patriots, but the Falcons passed on McCarthy who went to the Minnesota Vikings at #10.

Another factor Breer points to for helping establish the pecking order in Atlanta is that the Falcons appear to be getting their money’s worth from Cousins. Following an Achilles injury, there were questions about how quickly Cousins ​​would be ready, but the early returns are looking good…really good.

“The fact that Cousins ​​looks like him so far doesn’t hurt either,” Breer wrote. “He already has a lot of control over new Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson’s offense and is raising the level for the other 10 guys on the offensive group.

“For now and for the foreseeable future, the plan is for Cousins ​​to take all the reps with the starters, and Penix to take all the reps with the backups. But that’s not the kind of situation in which the quarterback -rookie guard needs in a red shirt. Atlanta has the flexibility to deploy him as a backup without the kind of risk that, say, New England might run by carrying a reworked Drake Maye as their No. 2 in 2023.”

Breer alluded to something we discussed this spring. Penix should take all reps with backups. No one wants Taylor Heinicke to keep Penix out of a practice or game as the rookie develops. That undrafted rookie, John Paddock, was a “pleasant surprise” coming out of Illinois, which only lends credence to the idea that Heinicke’s days in Atlanta are numbered.

If Paddock replaces Heinicke on the roster, it would be a clean slate of the quarterback room with Desmond Ridder, Logan Woodside and Heinicke all gone starting in 2023. Although the shake-up may have gotten off to a rocky start, Breer believes the transition should benefit everyone. evenings.

“So while this has all been complicated, the bottom line remains: If Cousins ​​is the quarterback for the next two or three years and Penix is ​​the guy for the next 10 years, it doesn’t matter how the Falcons got there,” Breer wrote. “Of course, by denying yourself the ability to build aggressively like most teams would with a quarterback on a rookie contract (with Cousins’ contract on the books), Atlanta has shrunk his path to get there.

“But if they get there, again, the rest becomes a footnote.”