Michael Penix Jr. comments on possible return vs. Panthers

The Atlanta Falcons are going into their Week 2 game against the Carolina Panthers with the same questions at quarterback that they've had for the last three months. Michael Penix Jr. has been cleared from his offseason surgery but remains cautious since it's his third career ACL reconstruction. Whi

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What is the story about?

The Atlanta Falcons are going into their Week 2 game against the Carolina Panthers with the same questions at quarterback that they've had for the last three months. Michael Penix Jr. has been cleared from his offseason surgery but remains cautious since it's his third career ACL reconstruction.

While Penix has been saying he's close to 100 percent for a few weeks now, it sounds like he has a real chance to play in Sunday's game. Head coach Kevin Stefanski didn't rule it out, and Penix himself left the door open at his Wednesday press conference.

"We're working. I'm close," Penix said when asked if he was ready to play on Sunday. "I know I've been saying that but it's just a couple technical things that I wanna hit, some goals that I have that I want

to achieve before I do step foot out on that field."

Now, while some fans might be rolling their eyes, Penix made sure to correct a reporter who asked if next week was a more realistic target date for his return.

"I mean, I didn't say this week wasn't realistic," replied Penix. "Today, I felt good in practice. You know, I want to keep making strides, keep feeling better each and every day. That's what it's about. And once my knee feels where I need it to be, I'm gonna be ready to play."

When was asked about Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes returning from a similar injury in a shorter amount of time, Penix was quick to point out that this was his third ACL injury and wasn't even technically the same procedure as Mahomes'.

"It's two totally different injuries," Penix said of Mahomes' injury. "Not everybody knows that. Not everybody understands that."

Penix makes a fair point, and as frustrating as it might be for the fans, the Falcons knew his injury history when they drafted him.

The former top-10 pick injured his knee last season against the Panthers in Week 10, but he was playing well before he went down (13/16, 175 passing yards, 112.2 rating). Perhaps we'll see Penix return to action and finish what he started in 2025.

For now, we will just have to keep on waiting.