N/S Forgive me for saying this, but the Falcons 2024 Quarterback move is GENIUS! (13 Viewers)

[SweetT]

Teams don't practice on Mon/Tues the week of a Sunday game so he had the full practice week last week.

Yeah that’s correct. Forgot about their recovery day (my work week is not of a normal schedule). However, it was his first time getting first team reps with the 1s. That’s not a common practice week for a rookie QB making his debut. That first week hits different.

 

[ELLIASJWILLIAMS]

Yeah that’s correct. Forgot about their recovery day (my work week is not of a normal schedule). However, it was his first time getting first team reps with the 1s. That’s not a common practice week for a rookie QB making his debut. That first week hits different.

He's also been getting backup reps in TC since there was no "competition" for the backup/#3. So Penix was likely developed far better than what we did w/ Rattler due to the presence of Haener

 

[SweetT]

Dude didn't even throw a TD pass and we're saying he's their next franchise QB? They had 2 pick sixes and 2 Bijan TDs againts the Giants... They won by a lot and I heard Penix didn't look bad, but one game against arguably the worst team in the league doesn't mean the Falcons are set for a run and Penix is going to ball out down the stretch.

While the Giants may be bottom feeders, they did lose 6 games by 7 points or less. So they are competitive sometimes

 

[Bill]

a week ago the sky fell for ATL. Just one week later its the total opposite vibe. As a Saints fan, we're staring at fallen sky pieces on the ground. However, if Rattler plays well and gets the win, then we'll be feeling much better. I just hope they play him enough for us to know if hes worthy to build around.

If he is judged by how badly he gets beat tonight, then this staff needs to get blown up. I'm definitely not saying that he is the answer to the Saints QB issues (or even their backup QB issues). But there's no way anyone can determine if he's worthy of a roster spot in the future based of what he can do with our makeshift roster. He has ZERO weapons to work with and he will be running for his life most of the night. If he can show even the slightest amount of poise without getting 'rattled' (weak pun intended), then he at least deserves a shot at running the offense with someone left on the offense to help him out.

I we were told in early September that by the end of the season we would have no Olave, no Shaheed, no Kamara, no Hill, no Carr, no Lattimore and had 2/3rds of our offensive line missing for a considerable portion of the 2024 season, we would be wondering how we ever got to 5 wins.

We're all (with some exceptions around here) are hoping for a win tonight. But if there is anyone in the entire Who Dat Nation who is still expecting a Saints victory up in Lambeau tonight, they certainly need to get some psychological help before the problem gets worse. Rattler needs real starters in the huddle with him before someone can judge his quarterbacking abilities, or lack thereof.

 

[SweetT]

He's also been getting backup reps in TC since there was no "competition" for the backup/#3. So Penix was likely developed far better than what we did w/ Rattler due to the presence of Haener

Obviously yes he was better prepared than Spencer was. However, I can make the case that Penix had more pressure in his first start than Spencer. No one on the planet expected Spencer to go out and win.

 

[Bill]

Of all things for you to ask forgiveness for, you chose this?

One request of many.

 

[St. Widge]

While the Giants may be bottom feeders, they did lose 6 games by 7 points or less. So they are competitive sometimes

I know another guy capable of losing 6 games by 7 points or less. I bet he could even pull off 7. He'll be tanned and ready to go by next season.

 

[ELLIASJWILLIAMS]

Obviously yes he was better prepared than Spencer was. However, I can make the case that Penix had more pressure in his first start than Spencer. No one on the planet expected Spencer to go out and win.

How would you make that case?

Even Rattler himself pointed out that going from #3 to #1 in such short notice was a “shell shock”. Add that to being behind a depleted OL and losing your #1 WR after 4 or 5 plays and I’d say Rattler was put in far worse position than Penix was in his first start.

 

[treeduck]

Genius and Falcons don't belong in the same sentence.

 

[SweetT]

How would you make that case?

Even Rattler himself pointed out that going from #3 to #1 in such short notice was a “shell shock”. Add that to being behind a depleted OL and losing your #1 WR after 4 or 5 plays and I’d say Rattler was put in far worse position than Penix was in his first start.

Bc the Falcons were still in the division hunt late into the season. That’s a lot to put on a rookie QB’s shoulder. Like give him the keys to actually win vs what Spencer had to deal with. We were on a 3 game losing streak, injuries were piling up, and it was more like….. “hey, just do your best”. Plus, we still had that lame HC. So I know I didn’t expect us to win with Spencer

 

[ELLIASJWILLIAMS]

Bc the Falcons were still in the division hunt late into the season. That’s a lot to put on a rookie QB’s shoulder. Like give him the keys to actually win vs what Spencer had to deal with. We were on a 3 game losing streak, injuries were piling up, and it was more like….. “hey, just do your best”. Plus, we still had that lame HC. So I know I didn’t expect us to win with Spencer

Im sorry, don’t fully comprehend the logic

 

[SweetT]

Im sorry, don’t fully comprehend the logic

I’ll dummy it down.
The stakes were higher for Penix’s first start.
Vs
Spencer’s first start.

 

[Saint Spud]

Not entirely correct. Kirk got $90 million at signing.
$50 million bonus, plus his 2025/2025 cap hit upfront.
That money is already paid out to Kirk. It’s not spilling over to 2026. So they will have money to spend.
They have a really good group of young players already around Penix, who is on a rookie contract.
This is not a case where they have a depleted roster. They already have talent that can ascend into their primes.

Not talking about pure cash. Talking about cap/dead cap.

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Kirk Cousins contract and salary cap details, full contract breakdowns, salaries, signing bonus, roster bonus, dead money, and valuations.

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Thats a ton of $ that could’ve gone elsewhere

 

[Bill]

You are overthinking this.

And this mentoring thing, that's the QB's coach's job. A vet may give advise to a rookie, sure, yet the vet is not in charge of the rookie's development; again, that's the job of the QB's coach

I’m not really assuming that Penix is getting his training & prowess from Cousins. What I’m saying is that Cousins gave the franchise the time needed for Penix to develop some rapport with his offense and get comfortable with/learn the Falcons’ playbook and schemes. That would have been hard for him to do if he started from Week 1 with only a few series’ in the preseason.

But Cousins is NOT the reason that he is more prepared to start at this stage of the season. The majority of what he may have learned from Cousins is simply from observing Kirk’s interaction with the team and watching offensive replays with his teammates & coaches in the film room.

 

[Saint Spud]

Without picking up Cousins, Penix would have been thrown to the dogs in Week 1 hoping that he could catch on quickly enough to put them on a path to the division crown and a top four seed. Without having an experienced QB to start the season, it's hard to imagine that Penix would have the Falcons at the top of the division, and by this stage of the season he could have been out with an injury and/or possibly missing some time. And if that happened, then they would likely have some kid that was sitting on a practice squad somewhere trying to lead the Falcons into the postseason. But instead they have a healthy quarterback who has had time to develop under an experienced veteran and is now ready to show the league what he can do without the opponents having a lot of film on how best they can stop him.

Does this 'Penix Plan' get them to the Superbowl? I certainly hope not. But either way all that 'foundation building' is off to a much better start with Atlanta looking like the team to beat in the NFC South in 2025.

The fallacy here is that they HAD to sign Cousins.

Sam Darnold has been a better player and only signed a one-year deal for $10 mil. He was going to be the stopgap until McCarthy was ready and he didn’t get a massive deal.