The biggest shock of the entire 2024 NFL Draft was undoubtedly when the Atlanta Falcons decided to select Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with the eighth overall pick.
Although some teams were high on Penix, taking him with the eighth pick was an extreme reach.
Normally, when you pin-point who you believe is a franchise quarterback, you do whatever it takes to get him. The last thing you want to do is get cute with draft order and risk losing your guy.
However, Atlanta’s issue was a bigger one. They just signed quarterback Kirk Cousins to a massive four-year, $180 million deal with a whopping $100 million guaranteed.
One line of thinking is “hey, having two quarterbacks you truly believe in is a good problem to have.” … People in this camp point to the possibility of a perfect Cousins-to-Penix succession plan.
However, when you bring in an expensive “win-now” quarterback and you’re lucky enough to own the #8 pick in the draft, the expectation is that you use that premium pick on a player who is ready to contribute immediately.
After all, it’s not like the Falcons are in a full-blown rebuild mode. They have solid pieces in place and are much closer to competing than what some people think.
Needless to say, the mild-mannered Cousins was very disappointed by the Falcons head-scratching decision.
Cousins’ agent Mike McCartney admitted that the Penix selection came as an enormous surprise to his client who had been expected the high pick to be spent on a more useful player.
“Yes, it was a big surprise,” McCartney told Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network. “We had no idea this was coming. The truth is the whole league had no idea this was coming. We got no heads up. Kirk got a call from the Falcons when they were on the clock. That was the first we herd. It never came up in conversation.
Cousins is well-known throughout the league for his maturity and professionalism, which is why it came as no surprise that he was one of the first people to reach out to Penix to congratulate him on joining Atlanta.
Although he’s understandably frustrated by the pick, Cousins will surely do everything he can to help Penix adjust to the NFL world – while also helping the Falcons win games.
Having said that, you have to wonder if Cousins regrets his decision to sign with Atlanta…
As it turns out, Cousins may not have to worry about being a Falcon for too long…
According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, if Atlanta ends up seeing enough out of Penix to believe that he’s capable of stepping in as their starter, the organization could look to trade Cousins – possibly as soon as next year.
“Do you play Penix if he’s good enough?” Rapoport pondered on The Rich Eisen Show. “Then maybe you do … You could theoretically trade Cousins to a place he would want to go to the next season and then you have your franchise guy.”
Cousins, who previously spent six highly-productive seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the Falcons.
His wife is from the south and the family was thinking and hoping that Atlanta would be the final stop of his career.
Maybe it will be. Maybe it won’t…
Adding intrigue to the situation is Cousins’ reported no-trade clause, granting him leverage in any potential trade discussions initiated by the Falcons.
Following the draft, Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot reaffirmed Cousins’ status as the team’s starting quarterback, emphasizing their excitement about both Cousins and their future plans with Penix.
“Kirk Cousins is our quarterback,” Fontenot firmly asserted. “We’re very excited about Kirk. We’re very excited about this team. Michael Penix, we’re talking about the future. You look at the future. You look at the big picture. We are very excited about that quarterback room, and again, Kirk is our quarterback.”
Head coach Raheem Morris echoed Fontenot’s sentiments, expressing optimism about the team’s prospects with Cousins at the helm.
Morris emphasized the importance of capitalizing on their current draft position, indicating that the Falcons anticipate a successful season with Cousins leading the charge.
At the end of the day, they thought highly enough of Penix to use such a valued pick on him … Maybe they will turn out to be right after all. (Or maybe they won’t.)
Either way, they just made the whole situation in Atlanta very tense and awkward.
Cousins is one of the most underrated players in all of football. His haters don’t want to hear this, but the fact of the matter is he’s a near-elite quarterback.
Is he perfect? No … Does he need to play better in big games? Yes.
The bottom line is the ball is in his court now. Maybe he ends up getting traded. But at least for this season, if he’s as good as what many people think (myself included), he will produce positive results for the Falcons.
The entire situation is very similar to the whole Aaron Rodgers – Jordan Love saga a few years ago.
Although Atlanta used a much higher pick on Penix (#8) than Green Bay did on Love (#26), there are parallels with both situations.
The last thing Rodgers wanted was for the Packers to use their first-round pick on his eventual replacement. Same with Cousins.
Although some people may be putting the horse before the carriage just a tad too early with Love, the fact of the matter is he has progressed and developed. He was forced to grow the old-fashioned way: on the bench.
The method seems to be working out just fine for the Packers. Perhaps it will for the Falcons as well.
Only time will tell…
What are your thoughts on Atlanta using the eighth overall pick on Penix?
Do you think Cousins will be traded at some point? … Should he be?
When we’re all gray and old, will time look back favorably on the Falcons decision? … Or will it go down as an all-time disaster???