The Atlanta Falcons are hoping their investment in quarterback Michael Penix Jr. pays off this season. The former top-10 pick appeared in five games last season (three starts), and will enter 2025 as the team’s unquestioned starter ahead of Kirk Cousins.
Penix may not be a proven commodity, but his arm talent is up there with some of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. Don’t believe me? Ask three-time Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes.
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In an interview with For The Win’s Cory Woodroof, Mahomes was asked what he thought of Penix and the Falcons heading into the 2025 season.
“He’s a great football player, man,” Mahomes said of Penix. “I watched him actually when he was at Indiana, and then going over to Washington and how much success he had. And that the end of last season, I thought he did a great job. And so, [he] can throw the football as good as anybody. [He’s going to] keep getting better and better in the NFL.”
The Falcons and Chiefs faced off last season, but Cousins was still starting for Atlanta at quarterback. The team eventually benched Cousins following arguably the worst stretch of his NFL career. Penix stepped in for the final three games of the 2024 season and played well.
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Even though the Falcons went 1-2 in the games he started, Penix’s ability to push the ball down the field and stand tough in the pocket impressed many around the league. His numbers were respectable — 775 passing yards, four touchdowns (one rushing) and three interceptions.
Penix closed out the year with an monster 312-yard, two-touchdown performance against the Carolina Panthers. The Falcons may have lost that game, but it was clear to anyone watching that Penix is the team’s future.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Atlanta Falcons: Patrick Mahomes praises Michael Penix Jr.’s arm