Falcons weren’t the only team ready to take Michael Penix Jr. in Top 10

The Atlanta Falcons caused jaws to drop and hands to be thrown up in disbelief in the football world for their actions during the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Instead of taking their choice of the best defensive player available or even wide receiver Rome Odunze, the Falcons chose to select Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with the eighth overall pick. That is nothing against Penix, who has incredible arm talent. It's the situation he was drafted into.

This offseason, the Falcons committed a four-year contract to veteran Kirk Cousins, where $100 million of his $180 million salary is guaranteed. Cousins hasn't even played a down yet for the Falcons, and the team used a high draft pick on his replacement. Not to mention that Penix is going to be 24 years old entering his rookie season, which is a bit older for a quarterback the Falcons plan to sit.

Penix's draft stock fluctuated throughout the pre-draft process, but after getting medically cleared and working through the pre-draft process, Penix had worked his way up to a first-round prospect. As it turns out, other teams were looking to take the Washington signal-caller early.

According to NFL journalist James Palmer, the Las Vegas Raiders, New Orleans Saints, and Seattle Seahawks all tried to trade into the top 10 to select Penix.

Raiders, Saints, and Seahawks reportedly tried to trade up into Top 10 for Michael Penix Jr.

Again, it's not a shock that Penix was taken as early as he was on the opening night of the draft. It was the situation in which he is being put into.

The Raiders were a popular landing spot for Penix in mock drafts, notably at the 13th overall pick. The organization did sign Gardner Minshew to a two-year contract as a superb bridge quarterback option to win you some games. However, being in the same division as Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert, the Raiders needed to find a long-term option.

The Saints have never really had a true succession plan in place after Drew Brees retired after the 2020 season. Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill didn't necessarily pan out, and the team never used a premium draft pick to take them. While the team paid a ton of money for Derek Carr, the clock is ticking before the contract runs out and they need a young quarterback to sit behind him on the depth chart. After Round 1, their options are rather slim in terms of "QB1-quality prospects" left.

The Seahawks were an interesting team to read in Palmer's tweet, but it does make sense. A new coach is leading the way in Mike Macdonald, who is looking to mold the team in his image. While the team did have Geno Smith under contract, there was buzz about how committed Macdonald was to him as their starter. But the Seahawks informed Smith that he would be on the roster. Yet, the team still did make a trade for Sam Howell, who is essentially filling in the backup spot on the roster with Drew Lock leaving for the New York Giants.

Instead, all three of those teams watch the Falcons take Penix. While there were concerns about Penix regarding his lengthy injury history, which saw each of his four seasons at Indiana end prematurely, the arm talent was hard to deny. Penix was a quarterback who could fill in a QB1 spot on a team rather quickly. Instead, he will sit behind Cousins for however long that may be.