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Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff Writer
Michael Penix Jr. is the new starting quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons and Kirk Cousins is heading to the bench, coach Raheem Morris announced Tuesday night.
“After review we have made the decision Michael Penix will be the Atlanta Falcons starting quarterback moving forward,” Morris said in a statement released by the team. “This was a football decision and we are fully focused on preparing the team for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.”
The Falcons beat the Las Vegas Raiders 15-9 on Monday night to snap a four-game losing streak. But Cousins was just 11-of-17 passing for 112 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He has nine interceptions and just one touchdown pass in his past five games.
Cousins didn’t throw on first down in the first half Monday night, the first time that has occurred in his 13-year career. He threw on first down to open the second half and it resulted in an interception by Raiders linebacker Robert Spillane. Running backs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier combined for 34 carries, which was the bulk of the team’s offense.
After the game, Cousins said he had to play better. Morris indicated as much in his postgame news conference, stating the “obvious.”
Cousins, 36, is completing 64.7% of his passes with 18 touchdowns and a league-high 16 interceptions. He also has 12 fumbles, tied for most in the NFL with Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield.
The Falcons signed Cousins, who was coming off a torn right Achilles that ended his 2023 season in Week 8, to a four-year, $180 million contract in the offseason. About $100 million of that is guaranteed, though most of that money comes off the books by 2026. The Falcons will pay Cousins $62.5 million this season.
Penix, 24, led the Washington Huskies to the national championship game last season before the Falcons selected him at No. 8 in April’s NFL draft. He completed 65.4% of his passes with 36 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in his final year with the Huskies, and his 4,903 passing yards were the most in the nation.
When it comes to playing Penix, Morris said earlier Tuesday before the switch, that the Falcons are “being really smart and cautious in how we go about our business,” but he doesn’t believe there is a downside to playing him now.
“You could never say there’s a [downside] to turn it over to somebody that you put a lot of investment into, somebody that you brought in here, somebody you’ve done some things with, somebody that [has] said nothing but the right things since they’ve been here,” Morris said of Penix.
The Falcons host the 2-12 Giants on Sunday. At 7-7, Atlanta is still in the playoff hunt, though the four-game losing streak sent the team plummeting from its first-place perch in the NFC South.
When the Falcons drafted Penix, Morris and general manager Terry Fontenot made it clear that Cousins was the quarterback of the present and Penix would be their quarterback of the future. Cousins was caught off guard by the selection of Penix after he was informed of it just a few minutes prior to the move. He texted Penix later that night, and the two forged a relationship this season.
Cousins and Penix live on the same street in suburban Georgia and sometimes carpool to the team plane for road games.
Earlier this month, Penix said he was supporting Cousins and believed he would turn things around. But he said he would be ready if the Falcons needed him.
“I have to be [ready] because you never know when the opportunity [comes],” Penix said earlier this month. “So, I always stay ready, but at the end of the day, like I said, it’s not up to me. I just got to continue to be ready, continue to stay ready for that moment, whenever that is.”
