Quarterback issues have been handicapping the Atlanta Falcons' offense all season, which hasn't been ideal for new OC Tommy Rees. Then again, being forced to start Cooper Rush for two games is the NFL equivalent of being forced to call plays blindfolded and with a hand tied behind your back.
With both Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa injured, Rush starting didn't exactly help the Falcons' offense get off to a surging start. They're the only offense in the NFL and the first since the 2008 Rams to not have a single red-zone possession across two games--but that's not Rees' fault.
Through two games, the Falcons rank dead last in both offensive EPA per play (-0.44) and total EPA (-55.06), but the good news for Rees is that trend won't last for much longer. Penix is back from injury and will make his first start of the season on Thursday Night Football against the Green Bay Packers.
Tommy Rees is one of the biggest winners of Michael Penix Jr.'s return
People have been quick to judge Rees, but we need some context here. On the first play against the Panthers, Rees dialed up a simple play-action boot play--and it worked. A receiver was wide open, but Rush instead kept it himself, where he fumbled for the first of his three turnovers on the game. I don't think incompetence under center is something we can ding the guy calling plays for.
The issue with Rush starting was that he could barely move the football--which made it hard for the 34-year-old to go deep in his bag of tricks and get creative as a play-caller despite having the personnel to do so. But the good news with Penix's return is that Rees can now open up the playbook.
Michael Penix Jr. has elite arm talent and can make all of the throws a quarterback is asked to--which is good news for Rees since he can now get into a play-calling rhythm. Instead of starting an emergency QB who can't even hit the layups, Atlanta will actually start a guy who deserves to step on an NFL field going forward.
There wasn't much of a downfield element to this offense in Weeks 1 and 2, so rather than playing conservatively and running exclusively through Bijan Robinson, the Dirty Birds will now force defenses to pick your poison between locking down Bijan, Drake London, and Kyle Pitts--which should help get the most out of their personnel.
Having the run game with Bijan will help open up the play-action game--and they're designed to take pressure off of one another, so Rees has a chance to play into his QB's strengths. The former top-10 pick is at his best as a play-action passer, and while evaluating if he can be a franchise QB, Penix deserves to be in a system where he can thrive after Atlanta hardly ran play-action las season.
Tommy Rees hasn't had a ton to work with in his first two weeks as the Falcons' offensive coordinator, but with Michael Penix Jr. back in the lineup, the playbook will no longer be limited to check-downs and run plays--and the addition of the downfield passing game will allow him to call plays with a full playbook for the first time all year.
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