Keeping Michael Penix Jr. protected has been paramount to the Atlanta Falcons' success this season, and there's no way around it. In games where he's handled the pressure well, they've won, but in games where the blitz overwhelms the offense like against the Bears and Ravens, things go poorly.
While Penix has done everything you could ask for from a franchise QB and the Falcons boast the NFL's highest-scoring offense since his return in Week 3, things aren't perfect yet. His struggles against the blitz are still an issue, and one game isn't enough of a sample size to feel otherwise.
However, this was better in Week 7. According to Next Gen Stats, the former top-10 pick was pressured just six times on 34 dropbacks (17.1%) against the 49ers, which was the second-lowest pressure rate of his career. He was never hit or sacked despite facing one of the better pass-rushes in the NFL since Raheem Morris instead opted to focus on slowing down Bijan Robinson.
Michael Penix Jr. needs to keep getting the ball out quickly against the Bucs
Pressure not getting home on Penix was the main reason the Falcons were able to hand the 49ers their first loss of the season on Sunday, which helped everything else click and saw him be named the NFC Offensive Player of the Week after a three-touchdown game. A lot of people played a part in his success last week, but more than anything, No. 9 was getting the ball out quickly.
According to Next Gen Stats, he was getting the ball out in 2.5 seconds on average vs. the Niners, which is one of the better time to throw numbers of his career and the second-best in the NFL in Week 7--which is what Atlanta needs from him so he can continue thriving against the blitz.
He was taking what the defense gave him, sticking with the layups, and it worked, but in Week 8 against the Bucs, things will not be as easy.
The Bucs' pass-rush will make life hard on Michael Penix Jr. on Sunday
Like Morris, Todd Bowles is known for getting creative with the ways he deploys pressure, and he has a lot better personnel at his disposal. The 49ers were without their top pass-rusher in Nick Bosa: the Buccaneers have one of the better defensive lines in football that also happens to be at full strength.
Rueben Bain Jr. has started to come into his own, YaYa Diaby is coming off of a three-sack game, and David Walker and Al-Quadin Muhammad have been solid pieces. And given they have an elite run-stuffer in Vita Vea who leads their run defense, they won't make things easy on this Atlanta offense.
Tampa Bay is coming off of a dominant 43-13 win over the Panthers where they pressured Bryce Young 20 times and sacked him five times--which led to them forcing four turnovers on the game because their defensive line enjoyed one of its best performances of the season to date.
They had one of the most productive QBs in the NFL this season in hell, so the Dirty Birds have to be careful with their gameplan here. Just like against the 49ers, they need to make things as easy on Penix as possible, so Tommy Rees needs to call plays designed to get the ball out quick and go for the easy reads--which means that the offensive line needs to hold up long enough to do so.
Michael Penix Jr. has been sensational this season, and while the Bucs are going to challenge him in the pocket, his recent success against the blitz and quick time to throw worked against the 49ers, so hopefully it can work for a second straight week.
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