The Atlanta Falcons are moving forward with Michael Penix Jr. as their starting quarterback. With or without Kirk Cousins, and maybe with or without safety Justin Simmons. While Simmons had an up-and-down season with the Dirty Birds last year, he saw what we came to realize later in the campaign that Penix looks to be special. It took Simmons less than a week to be blown away by his mega talent.
Keep in mind that Penix was drafted No. 8 overall by the Falcons to back up Cousins for two years. 14 games later, guess who was leading the Falcons out of the tunnel. The other thing to remember is Simmons signed with the Falcons very late in the offseason process last season. He picked Atlanta over the New Orleans Saints after things ended for him with his former team in the Denver Broncos.
When asked by Kay Adams what his early impressions of Penix were, Simmons offered the following, h/t ProFootballTalk.
“Training camp. It was my third day of practice, literally third day being there. He was running the second-team reps and going up against the second-team defense, and he had this no-look throw down the sideline right into — it was the craziest throw I think I’ve ever seen in person. I was like, ‘oh, whatever it is, he has it.’ So, I’m excited to see what he does.”
Here is the clip from Simmons appearing on Up & Adams in which he opined on Penix's NFL talent.
Is Michael Penix Jr. the real deal?
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) April 8, 2025
Justin Simmons knew that was the case after only their third practice together in training camp. 🔥@heykayadams | @jsimms1119 | @AtlantaFalcons pic.twitter.com/Iv1XlXQXED
Dirty Bird Nation is desperately hoping that whatever Penix has, he has it in droves to lead Atlanta.
Michael Penix Jr. has the it factor, according to Falcons safety Justin Simmons
I covered Penix last year and throughout his entire college football career split between Washington and Indiana. I have also interviewed him over the phone before. So when I say that he possesses a certain leadership quality that I have only seen out of elite quarterbacks, I am not kidding. I mean, he was an elite quarterback in college. The question is if he will be able to tap into that at the NFL level.
The story behind the story last year was players in Falcons practice saw what Simmons saw out of Penix quite early. While Cousins had earned his keep in the league, the allure of Penix was too compelling to leave on ice for very long. Assuming he hits over the next year or so, Falcons much-maligned general manager Terry Fontenot will look like a genius and no one will remember the draft.
What is important to understand is even if this is Penix's first full season as the starter, he is facing an absurd amount of pressure. Cousins' albatross of a contract remains on the books. The Falcons are in the midst of their longest playoff drought in either of their high-profile quarterbacks' lifetimes. If Atlanta fails to reach the postseason again, Fontenot may be gone, and so may Raheem Morris, too.
For now, we will remain in awe of the splendor of what Penix could mean to this franchise and this city.