Latest Falcons report twists knife in Kirk Cousins, Michael Penix Jr. controversy

A lot is getting passed over when it comes to raking the Atlanta Falcons over the coals for their No. 8 overall pick. Again, it has nothing to do with Michael Penix Jr. as a player. Most people who follow college football closely know the dude can play. It has little to do with Kirk Cousins as well. We know what he can do when he is out there on the field. It has everything to do with Atlanta having both.

Cousins reportedly left the Minnesota Vikings because he did not want the team to draft his replacement while he was still on the roster. I don't know if he was given some assurances upon coming to Flowery Branch, but it probably didn't land well with him when Atlanta used the No. 8 overall pick on the other former Washington quarterback. Of course, there is way more to this than you think.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported that Falcons owner Arthur Blank was on-board with Terry Fontenot's selection of Penix at No. 8 because it was every bit in line with what Raheem Morris said he was going to do the next time he got to be an NFL head coach. He wanted a quarterback succession plan. Under Morris, Atlanta will eventually pivot off Cousins in favor of Penix; we don't know when it will be.

Atlanta did not have a succession plan in place with Matt Ryan, which led them to this situation...

Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank was on-board with Michael Penix Jr.

Now that the initial shock factor has worn off, you can kind of see the method through the madness when it comes to the Falcons' grandiose plans. What you have to remember is that when Blank bought the team from Taylor Smith in the early 2000s, they had a quarterback of the future in Michael Vick. Outside of the 2007 season, Blank could always count on his quarterback. First Vick, then Ryan.

The last two years have been an anomaly for Atlanta. Up until 2022, quarterback play was rarely the reason why the team didn't win. You could usually blame it on coaching, terrible clock management or never getting after the opposing quarterback ever, but hardly ever quarterback play. With Blank in his 80s now, he wants to see his beloved Falcons hoist a Lombardi Trophy.

If you think about it, Morris never shied away from his desire to have a quarterback position plan. He argued for one when he was interviewed for the Falcons' job in 2021 after being the interim in 2020. Fontenot has built up a roster that should be good enough to win the NFC South this year. Frankly, Atlanta may not be in a position to draft a franchise quarterback for a few years because of great play.

Yes, allegedly tampering to get Cousins to come over may hurt them in the end when it comes to draft capital. However, Atlanta's time to win games is now, so having a quarterback room of Cousins, Penix and veteran journeyman Taylor Heinicke certainly helps them in that regard. The biggest problem wasn't that Atlanta took Penix, it was that the Falcons took him eight. The fear of missing out.

While I understand that other teams picking in the teens supposedly wanted Penix too, Atlanta got harpooned throughout the draft process for doing something that got Mike Mayock fired years before with the Las Vegas Raiders. Where you draft players matters, and Atlanta paid a premium for a quality, but not transcendent quarterback prospect. In the end, I understand the move ... in a vacuum.

Overall, Atlanta is only going to get out of its own way if everyone is on the same page. This includes Blank, who put way too much trust in Rich McKay for years to his franchise's detriment. Fontenot has done well in his first few drafts and free agencies. Morris is ready to prove himself in his second stab as a head coach. It all comes down to the players responding to the right quarterback to lead them.

The biggest question now is which quarterback that will be. Will it be Cousins or will it be Penix?