After what appeared to be a breakout victory over the Minnesota Vikings in Week 2, the Atlanta Falcons came crashing back to reality in their Week 3 loss to the Carolina Panthers. Just about everything that went right last week went wrong in a 30-0 loss on Sunday afternoon, including the performance of Michael Penix Jr.
Penix completed just 18-of-36 passes for 172 yards and two interceptions in the loss, having his worst start as a professional. Like most quarterbacks who have a performance this bad, it raises questions about his job security, and Kirk Cousins replaced Penix in the third quarter as the offense struggled to move the ball.
The cameo may have made Cousins believe he’d be in the mix to get his starting job back after being benched in December. But like many Falcons on Sunday, Cousins was offered a reality check when head coach Raheem Morris told reporters including Falcons team writer Tori McElhaney that he will not be competing for the starting job this week.
Kirk Cousins is Stuck on the Falcons Bench Despite Michael Penix Jr.’s Struggles
While Cousins got into the game on Sunday, completing 5-of-7 passes for 29 yards, it was mainly with the Falcons' backups., Morris said he put him in because the game was out of hand and not because of Penix’s performance and gave an immediate, one-word answer of “No,” when asked if Cousins could win his job back next week.
“We did not play well in any facet and he did not play well as well,” Morris said. We didn’t play well around him and we’ve got to play better across the board. …[The] game was out of hand and I moved on, keep [Penix] out of harm’s way and keep our guys out of harm’s way, take a couple guys out…the game was out of hand. They got us.”
Morris’s immediate answer shows just how much the relationship between Cousins and the Falcons has deteriorated. Cousins was serving as the Falcons' starter this time one year ago as he was in the first season of a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million guaranteed. He even led the Falcons to a 6-3 start before an elbow injury forced a decline in his performance and eventually led him to the bench for Penix.
Many believed that Cousins’s days in Atlanta were numbered after his benching but the Falcons have held onto him and used him as a backup despite his $45 million salary. After Penix threw for 298 yards and a touchdown in the Week 1 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he has thrown for just 307 yards with two interceptions over the last two games, leading to some speculation that Cousins was coming in to replace Penix.
But after taking Penix with the eighth overall pick in the 2024 draft, the Falcons have locked themselves into two massive investments at the quarterback position. For now, they’re willing to ride out the second-year quarterback's struggles, and Cousins may have to continue to wait for another injury or a release next offseason to get back into a starting job.