Michael Penix is ​​the Atlanta Falcons’ new starting quarterback and it appears the team is ready to make the move for the remainder of the 2024 NFL season.

The move came hours after Raheem Morris refused to name Kirk Cousins ​​as the starter, the type of talk that generally brings about a change. I wondered if we might hear about the move tomorrow at the team’s first practice of the week, but Atlanta was quick to make the move and announced it Tuesday night.

Penix was selected in the top ten in an absolute upset because the Falcons decided he was too good to pass up, a cannon-armed left-handed quarterback with elite agility, accuracy and real experience. The fact that they had Cousins ​​under contract already gave them a logical succession plan at Penix, even if spending a top ten pick was obviously a risk when the team had more pressing needs, and even if Penix was looking for both a quarterback prospect as well as a senior player with a real injury history. But the team has seen Cousins ​​struggle more than they ever expected, and so Penix will take the field sooner than they imagined. From every report that has come out in the last few weeks and since Flowery Branch was drafted, it appears that he will be ready.

Kirk Cousins ​​looked lost in Week 15. Morris couldn’t ignore the fact that despite a game script that rarely called for first-down throws and limited the number of passing plays, Cousins ​​was inaccurate, uncertain and lackluster throughout Monday night’s football. Considering that the game was against the weak Raiders, considering that the Falcons posted their lowest point total of the season against the Las Vegas defense, and considering that this was the latest in a long line of bad games by Cousins, it’s fair to wonder if this could finally be a breaking point.

Morris has always maintained that Kirk Cousins ​​is this team’s starting quarterback, but on Monday night he said a little more clearly that Cousins ​​needs to play better. Today he instead talked about going through a process and mentioned that Cousins ​​seemed to have lost confidence. The conclusion, immediately grasped by every reporter in attendance and fans across the galaxy, was that a move to Michael Penix in the starting lineup could be in the cards ahead of the Week 16 game against the Giants.

This mirrors the Marcus Mariota-Desmond Ridder situation the Falcons found themselves in in 2022, except there were far more dollars and draft capital invested in that quarterback room than this one. In this case, Arthur Smith stood steadfastly behind Mariota until his tone suddenly changed and he spoke of evaluating each position. Coaches who make it clear who their starters are rarely stop talking so definitively unless they’re considering a move, and as it turns out, that was the case with Morris.

Needless to say, this wasn’t what the Falcons wanted. They worked out Cousins’ contract with a possible exit after 2025, but they hoped – actually expected – that Cousins ​​would start both seasons while Michael Penix learned the ropes. They would have expected there to be some issues for a quarterback coming off an Achilles tendon injury, but they certainly didn’t expect to actually lose games and deal with a sputtering offense because of the veteran’s poor performance would have. But over the last five weeks, when the Falcons are 1-4, Cousins ​​has thrown nine interceptions for one touchdown and has looked increasingly nervous and inept in recent weeks. For a player who was known for remaining steadfast even in the face of disagreement and frustration, this stretch is concerning.

The Falcons, who fought their way back to .500 with very little help from Cousins ​​en route to a 15-9 victory over the Raiders, know their chance of making the playoffs depends on winning their final three games. The way Cousins ​​is currently playing will almost certainly result in at least one loss in that span, and the Falcons know that, if nothing else, Penix can move better and throw a livelier ball than their veteran starter. The Falcons clearly believe Penix gives them a better chance to win right now, and they’re probably right.

The consequences of this decision (if it is made) will be discussed later, but it goes without saying that if Penix does well, Cousins ​​will likely leave Atlanta in 2025. There are challenges for this team, but in the here and now, they are pressing on the playoffs and Morris indicated that they need to do whatever gives the Falcons their best chance of winning the next game, and then the next game, and then the next game.

Here’s hoping Penix is ​​every bit the top-ten pick and franchise quarterback the Falcons envision him to be, even if there will be inevitable hiccups and growing pains. Against a woeful Giants team, he will have a good first opportunity to make his mark and get his first career win, and may he take it.