The young quarterback’s performance became a hot topic of conversation for fans and film analysts alike in the aftermath of the loss. Fans, radio personalities and analysts alike described Penix’s performance as a regression and sign of growing pains, with the quarterback struggling with accuracy, footwork, mechanics and managing pressure.
Asked specifically about his quarterback’s development head coach Raheem Morris said Penix is developing well and the team “needs to execute better for Mike.”
“Mike’s gotta play better. He wants to play better. He’s always going to be one of those guys who is very hard on himself,” Morris said. “But he is a young man. He is a first-year quarterback, in his first year. And we need to play better for him and around him.”
Morris is likely referring to issues in protection and dropped passes, both of which arose against the Colts at some point or another through four quarters of play, plus an overtime series that did not yield points.
“You never really want to blame anybody when it comes down to that,” Morris said when asked about Penix’s completion percentage. “Mike is going to be so hard and critical of himself that it’s always going to be his fault, no matter what and where they were. But we have some things that we can clean up around him.”
Morris clarified that when he says Penix is “doing well” it means he is “developing and doing the right things, he knows what he wants to do.”
The Falcons — Morris added — need to execute better. That does include Penix as much as the whole offensive operation.
“I feel really great with Mike’s command,” Morris said. “We have to get everybody on the same page; everybody has to be the same way.”