Darnell Mooney's career in Chicago was maddening. He had an excellent second season, followed by some dismal seasons, in large part due to quarterback play. He then signed with the Atlanta Falcons last offseason.
He quickly became an impact player for Kirk Cousins as a reliable No. 2 behind Drake London. But then Michael Penix Jr. stepped in, and Mooney's production has dropped off.
With a "potential out" in his contract after this season, we could be watching Mooney's final games in red and black.
Darnell Mooney is quietly heading toward a disappointing exit in Atlanta
In Week 13 against the Minnesota Vikings last season, Darnell Mooney caught six passes for 142 yards. Since then, he has struggled with consistency and health, having just one game with over 44 receiving yards.
Kirk Cousins played one more game after Week 13; a game that saw one pass head in Mooney's direction, which was not caught.
Ironically, Michael Penix Jr. and Darnell Mooney's most productive game together came in the quarterback's first start. However, it has been a massive struggle ever since.
2024:
- W16 vs. NYG: 6 tgt, 5 rec, 82 yds, 0 TD
- W17 vs. WAS: 5 tgt, 2 rec, 37 yds, 0 TD
- W18 vs. CAR: Out w/ Injury
2025:
- W1 vs. TB: Out w/ Injury
- W2 vs. MIN: 4 tgt, 2 rec, 20 yds, 0 TD
- W3 vs. CAR: 11 tgt, 4 rec, 44 yds, 0 TD
- W4 vs. WAS: 1 tgt, 1 rec, 15 yds, 0 TD
With Cousins throwing him the ball, he averaged 7 targets, 4 receptions, 62 yards, and 0.4 touchdowns per game. With Penix, he has averaged 5 targets, 3 receptions, 40 yards, and 0 touchdowns.
If you take out the game against the Giants, which has proven to be an outlier to this point, he has averaged 5 targets, 2 receptions, and 29 yards.
That is not good enough for a receiver sitting on a three-year, $39-million contract.
So, that brings us to the next point, what will the Falcons do with him if he doesn't improve?
Mooney's cap hit next year would be $18.5 million, but Spotrac identified a "potential out" in his deal after this season that would leave them with $11 million in dead cap.
That is money that could be allocated to bringing back Kyle Pitts and extending Drake London and Bijan Robinson.
We could very possibly be seeing the Mooney's final season...
That said, there are other factors you have to consider. When Penix became the starter, the QB and WR had never worked with each other before.
This offseason, Mooney got injured before the two could start developing much-needed chemistry. They weren't able to spend meaningful time together until Week 2, and even then, he has been in and out with his hamstring injury.
We know this guy can play; he was extremely explosive last season and pivotal to the offense. But, as we all know, this is a business that often requires making the difficult decisions. For the Falcons, that difficult decision could be releasing one of last year's marquee free agent signings.