Grading Michael Penix Jr.’s 2024 NFL Draft landing spot with Falcons

It is no secret that Penix is not likely to see much of the field in 2024, 2025, or even 2026, and that is solely because of Cousins and his big-money, four-year deal. General manager Terry Fontenot attributed the decision to draft Penix to the situation that the Green Bay Packers were in when they added Jordan Love in 2020.

While there are a few parallels that can be pulled from the Love-Aaron Rodgers debacle, drafting Penix (who is only one year younger than Love present day) isn’t an easily-justifiable move for Atlanta and their front office.

Outside of Cousins, the Atlanta offense is composed of second-year running back Bijan Robinson, tight end Kyle Pitts, and wide receivers Drake London, Darnell Mooney, and Rondale Moore. With both Mooney (free agency) and Moore (trade) joining the franchise this offseason, this group of offensive skill players is ready to take that next step.

Adding a bonafide QB is all this team seems to be missing, which is where Cousins comes in. Granted, Penix is thought to be that guy in the future, but his time now will be spent on the bench, learning how to become the best NFL quarterback that he can become.

Year 1 expectations

Unlike other players in this landing spot series, there are no concrete expectations that are likely to happen. While that isn’t to say that Penix won’t see the field at all, his role is projected to be highly limited to being the backup to Cousins.

It is highly likely, however, that Penix will see time on the field, whether it be in a mop-up situation or if Cousins gets hurt. The stat projections for Penix obviously would be higher than what is listed below if Cousins were to miss time, but that part can’t be forecast, so the following projections don’t factor in any regular playing time.

2024 Stat Projections – 317 passing yards, 3 TDs, 1 INTs, 37 rushing yards

Fantasy Football impact

Hands off and stay away from Penix in any redraft form, unless (god forbid) there is a training camp injury to Cousins. Yes, the former Vikings signal caller has quite the checkered injury history and is likely due to be banged up a bit in 2024, but Penix isn’t worth rostering as a “just in case” player.

Regarding his value in dynasty fantasy football, Penix is a very interesting case.

On one hand, there is next-to-no current day value for Penix, seeing as how he likely will ride the pine for two-plus years. Outside of mop-up duty, Penix was clearly drafted to hold the clipboard for now, and be the break glass option in case of emergency.

But on the other hand, Penix likely slides into the starting role in 2027, based on Cousins’ contract, and if your roster either has a taxi squad or a deep bench, Penix is worth a look. Expecting any sort of return on Penix in either 2024 or 2025 is not going to happen, so only draft him if you are committed to holding onto him for a few years.

Landing spot grade

Grade: D

If the Falcons get a chance to see the type of quarterback Penix can be anytime before 2026, then either Cousins got hurt or he didn’t perform, both horrible outcomes for Atlanta. Whenever you hand over $180 million to a QB to lead your team, the hope is that any draft picks will be put towards helping your investment.

Instead, Atlanta decided to not only draft a QB early in the 2024 NFL Draft, but to reach on an option that, by all accounts, was better slotted to go around pick 15 at the earliest.

A mantra that seems to define current-day professional sports is this – bad teams stay bad – and that fits the Falcons very well right now. Granted, their 2024 season should be better, simply based on adding Cousins, but poorly-ran franchises are a detriment to their on-field product, and that could hold Atlanta back here.

For Penix, it’s incredibly unfortunate that he is getting all of this hate cast his way, because he didn’t ask to be drafted into this situation. A talented football player looking to take that next step, Penix will be thrown into the media firestorm right out of the gate, which is a tough undertaking for a rookie QB.

As it currently stands, this pick looks horrendous for the Falcons, and all signs point to this aging like sour milk. However, Penix could easily make these bad vibes disappear if he looks good when it is actually his time, regardless of how long that takes to happen.

Falcons fans just hope that Penix is thrown into an actual NFL game anytime soon, unless it is to simply kneel the ball in a win.