Kevin Stefanski looks to be the perfect head coaching hire for the Atlanta Falcons. He has a proven track record of winning with one of the league's worst organizations despite years and years of quarterback instability, which should seamlessly translate to a superior roster with no QB in Atlanta.
That should be good news for Michael Penix Jr., since Stefanski took the Browns to the playoffs despite starting 13 quarterbacks in six seasons at the helm. But not everyone believes in the Falcons' new head coach, as Baker Mayfield called him out on social media for his silence after he was traded.
Unlike many others Mayfield doesn't believe in the narrative that the 43-year-old was the victim of QB problems in Cleveland. He still harbors resentment against Stefanski for not texting or calling after the Browns traded him, but luckily, Browns' All-Pro OT Joe Thomas took Stefanski's side in response.
However, with Thomas' support or not, this whole saga is right to have Falcons fans worried. If he treated his supposed franchise QB in Mayfield with this much disregard, who's to say he's not gonna do the same to Penix in the near future?
If Baker Mayfield's past with Kevin Stefanski is any indictation, Michael Penix Jr. is in for a rude awakening
The Browns traded the former No. 1 overall pick after a down year in 2021 which saw him play through a torn labrum just one season after he led the team to their best franchise in 25 years.. and if that wasn't bad enough, they moved on from Mayfield in order to send the farm for Deshaun Watson.
That's a bit scary when you consider the Dirty Birds' own QB situation. Penix is just 12 starts into his career, so even though he's shown flashes of elite QB potential, he's in the midst of rehabbing another ACL tear that will sideline him for most of the summer and can extend into early next season.
The Washington product's injury history has been the main blemish against a signal-caller that has yet to live up to his potential, because he was never healthy enough to get acclimated in Zac Robinson's scheme. Even still, it's clear it wasn't a fit, but Stefanski's offense is a much better match.
Despite the worries about the revolving door at QB, the Falcons have to give the 25-year-old a real shot to succeed. The two-time Coach of the Year employs a play-action heavy scheme, and that's exactly where Penix thrives. He ranked eighth in the NFL in play-action yards per attempt in 2025, and that came while Atlanta ran play-action at the fifth-lowest rate in football.
Sure, there are some red flags with how he handled the Baker situation, but that was also four-and-a-half years ago now, so let's leave that in the past. If he realizes this season that Penix isn't the guy, perhaps we could revisit this point, but I'm gonna believe until Stefanski gives us a reason not to.