Falcons make controversial decision not to play Michael Penix Jr. in preseason game

While the Atlanta Falcons got in and out of their second preseason game unscathed, many NFL fans were questioning why their No. 8 overall pick in rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. did not even dress for the game. He was like many starters on the team in team gear on the sidelines. While he did play very well in his preseason debut last week vs. the Miami Dolphins, sitting him here was a choice.

The good news is Atlanta definitely has something in him in the form of their quarterback for the future. The bad news is he is not going to play very much this year or next, as he is expected to serve as Kirk Cousins' backup for the foreseeable future. Penix showed in his preseason debut that he could challenged for a starting job on lesser teams. Again, I think Atlanta made the right call here.

For a guy with a pair of knee injuries in college, one who is already a lock to make this team, why would you want to subject him to any unnecessary hits vs. a Baltimore Ravens team that takes preseason games more seriously than some teams take regular-season games? With weather being a factor pre-game, I get Raheem Morris holding out more and more starting-level players in this one.

It was a lot of Taylor Heinicke, followed up by some John Paddock in a very sleepy offensive game.

Atlanta Falcons make controversial decision to hold Michael Penix Jr. out

Given that this is my hometown team, one that I write about often and now have a weekly YouTube show for on The Blogging Dirty Podcast, I've got the sound on at a reasonable volume while I am working away doing FanSided.com obligations. One of the guys in the booth for the Falcons, I think it was either Justin Kutcher or Coy Wire said something in the second half that caught my attention.

I think the Falcons have seen enough out of Penix in the evaluation process. The offense they were running under Zac Robinson's guidance on Saturday afternoon may have only had five or six plays. Just like novocaine, give it time, it always works. While Robinson has not yet achieved Herman Boone status, it was all about offensive evaluation for guys who are borderline to make their 53-man roster.

While I understand that live reps vs. another team could be huge for Penix's development, again, I think he is much further along than even we realized. He is going to beat out Heinicke for the primary backup spot to Cousins. Keep in mind that he was in college for six years and was an unbelievable player during his time at Washington and at Indiana before that. So why did he play in Week 1 then?

Well, I think there were a few factors at play last week. The first was I think we all needed to see him play in a game. The second was he had a ton of family members in the audience last Friday night, as the Tampa native was playing in-state over in Miami. The last may have been to shake some levels of nervous energy off. Again, why would a rookie not play at least for a little bit during the preseason?

Ultimately, I think this comes down to the fact that Morris spent the last three years on Sean McVay's staff in Los Angeles. He notoriously keeps his starters out of preseason games. The other big thing is Morris has been adamant about having a succession plan at quarterback. What good would that be if Penix got hurt on Aug. 17? The last thing this team will need is for him to go the way of J.J. McCarthy.

I may have wanted to see him play, but I totally understand why Morris chose to hold him out here.