Do you remember when the Atlanta Falcons signed Kirk Cousins in the 2024 offseason? Do you remember the conversations you had? Do any of the following statements sound like something you would have said, heard, or believed
“They finally have a quarterback that can operate an NFL offense.”
“With the infrastructure around him, he just needs to keep the offense on track.”
“He’s a high-level game manager, and that’s enough for the Falcons to make the playoffs.”
Well, don’t worry; you’re not alone. There’s
a support group for people like you, and if you’re reading this, that means you’re already in the right place. Michael Penix Jr.’s arm has caused many to forget the above topics, statements that I believe could still prove to be true.
There is more to quarterback play and development than gaudy passing numbers, and volume stats don’t tell us what a quarterback can do.
Can they execute multiple game plans? How are they under pressure? Can he roll right and left? Can they change arm angles? The list goes on.
Penix won’t have many seasons like this current one. He’ll have the longest leash of his NFL career, a locker room that’s completely behind him, and individuals blinded by their fandom ready to go to bat for him. He needs to make the most of it. Penix’s first year starting shouldn’t consist of him having to win the game with individual dominance (it’s nice to know he can do it); wins should come as a result of a group effort on offense. More importantly, Penix needs to learn how to win in multiple ways, like he did on Sunday Night Football.
Where’s the deep ball? Opposing defenses aren’t giving it to him, and when they have, the offense hasn’t been able to connect. It’s easy to understand why, as while the sample size was small, Penix put on tape that letting him take deep shots is an unwise decision. Veteran defensive minds like Todd Bowles and Brian Flores know better than to give a quarterback what he wants, and both do an exceptional job at speeding up the process and forcing quarterbacks into quick decisions. Penix missed some opportunities, but he executed Zac Robinson’s game plan and never put the football at risk.
Being a game manager doesn’t produce highlights, but it can deliver wins. If Penix has to be a high-level game manager for the Falcons to win this season, then that’s what it takes. Even Patrick Mahomes (a dangerous comparison, I know) faced this challenge after teams got sick of him torching them through the skies. Viewers need to come off their priors and adjust to reality. The gun-slinging Penix that closed out 2024 might only show up a few times this season.
Flores won’t be the last defensive coordinator to use a two-high shell against Penix, but that means Bijan Robinson will get the opportunity to take over a game the way he did Sunday. This pick-your-poison scenario was the end goal Terry Fontenot had in mind when selecting four offensive players in a row with his first four first-round picks.
Eventually, teams will decide that selling out for the run is more important, and when that happens, Penix will need to be an efficient striker, something he’s still working on. This is all a part of the process of developing into a multi-year franchise quarterback. There’s no cutting corners in this league. You rarely get to win the same way week to week; it’s why employees of the league consistently talk about how hard the W’s are to come by.
Penix saw what happened to the 6-3, 2024 Atlanta Falcons; their demise is why he was inserted into the starting lineup. He knows that winning and protecting the ball will reward him with more job security than individual numbers, and that’s the mentality the leader of the offense needs to have. Selflessness is a trait all the elite offenses carry, and so far, this offense has it.
Don’t get me wrong, what we’ve seen overall from the offense isn’t good enough; they will need to make strides as the season progresses. It’s also important to note that starting on the mountain top isn’t always a sign of sustained success; ask the New Orleans Saints offense, which looked unstoppable through the first two weeks of 2024. September lies in the NFL.
Recalibrating the mind takes time. We all had our own idea of what this offense would look like, but we must examine what’s happening on the field with a clear mind, not a biased one. The Falcons will give us more information to digest after Sunday, so remember to take slow bites and consider the depth of flavor in each one.
