ATL Standard

Michael Penix Jr., selected as the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, is set to start his first career game in Week 16. The Atlanta Falcons' head coach, Raheem Morris, confirmed that Penix will replace Kirk Cousins as the starting quarterback against the New York Giants on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Penix has played in two games so far but only during garbage time. His participation was limited to seven snaps against the Seattle Seahawks and thirteen against the Denver Broncos, completing three of five passes for 60 yards. Despite this limited exposure, Coach Morris expressed confidence in Penix's readiness: "I think he's a young man that stays ready," Morris said. "He's a young man I got a lot of confidence in if something were to happen for him to go in and execute what we got to get done because of what I see in practice."

The decision to draft Penix in the first round was based largely on his performance at the University of Washington. During his final two seasons there, he completed 65.4% of his passes, averaging 340.9 yards per game with 67 touchdowns. He accumulated a total of 9,544 yards over those two years.

Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot spoke highly of Penix's capabilities after Round 1 of the draft: "We got a lot of conviction on Michael," Fontenot stated. "You can go watch where he got torn down in that championship game versus Michigan... But you can watch the body of work throughout the season and you can watch him go about his business."

Penix also played for Indiana University from 2018-21 but faced four season-ending injuries during that time. Nevertheless, he demonstrated resilience by completing 59.4% of his passes when healthy.

Upon learning about Atlanta's quarterback situation, Penix embraced it wholeheartedly: "I'm ready," he said earlier this month. "I have to be because you never know when the opportunity will come, so I always stay ready."