The Atlanta Falcons finally have their franchise quarterback in Michael Penix Jr., and while that makes Kevin Stefanski's job easier, he shouldn't even be the person happiest because of this development. That honor goes to former Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot, since Penix's lack of success was partly why he was fired in the first place .
Even though the Falcons signed Kirk Cousins for four years and $180 million just six weeks before draft day, Fontenot became enamored with Penix as a prospect. He saw the elite arm talent and was ready to call his shot on him, shocking everyone drafting him with the eighth pick in the 2024 Draft.
And while this pick originally offered a collective "WTF" from the NFL world, nobody can say Fontenot was wrong anymore. Cousins last just two seasons in red black and has flamed out after his hot start to 2026 with the Las Vegas Raiders, while Penix has only gotten better as the season has gone on.
Since returning from his torn ACL in Week 3, the 26-year-old has a 9:1 TD:INT ratio, and the only interception came on his opening drive of the season. Moreover, the Falcons have a 3-2 record and just knocked off the undefeated 49ers, and it was their franchise QB who helped them do pull off the 29-20 upset--since his emergence has unlocked everything for this Atlanta offense.
Some quarterbacks in this league break out instantly like Patrick Mahomes or Lamar Jackson, and others take more time to get it together, and right now, it's safe to say Penix belongs in that second group--so Fontenot technically wasn't wrong for believing in him, he was just early.
Michael Penix Jr. is proving Terry Fontenot was right to believe in him
Fontenot's argument was that Cousins was 36 and coming off an Achilles tear, but he thought the Falcons would never pick this high again, and given they picked 15th in 2025 and would've picked 13th in 2026, he was right. And now that Michael Penix Jr. is breaking out, he looks even better.
According to Kevin Cole, the former top-10 pick is currently eighth among qualified quarterbacks (min. 150 dropbacks) in EPA per play and EPA per pass, so he's one of the most efficient QBs in the league despite having the least time to throw and not having much mobility to escape the pocket.
In Sunday's win, Penix completed 25 of 34 passes for 213 yards and three touchdowns, where he became the third QB ever (joining Andrew Luck and Drew Brees) to throw three TDs and no picks against a 6-0 or better undefeated team--and since the run game wasn't there, he led them to this W.
The unfortunate truth for Fontenot is that Penix is breaking out because the old staff is gone. The Falcons never got the most out of his skillset with the coaches he helped hire. Compared to Raheem Morris and Zac Robinson, Kevin Stefanski and Tommy Rees have done more for his development.
This new staff is catering the offense to his strengths as a play-action passer, as he's eighth among all QBs in passer rating through seven weeks while mostly lining up under center. Another area of concern was his accuracy, yet he completed 73.5% of his passes against a Morris-led 49ers defense and has the same completion percentage as Josh Allen (66.7%) through seven games.
The former Heisman Trophy runner-up always comes through in clutch time, he can let it rip, but he's done a better job at taking the layup instead of the home-run in recent weeks. So as long as he continues to not turn the ball over and he's able to remain healthy, the future is very bright for him.
Although he isn't perfect yet, Michael Penix Jr. is finally starting to play like a real franchise quarterback. His breakout has people believing in the Falcons again, and it's just proving that despite all the issues he created for this team, Terry Fontenot was right to risk his future on No. 9.
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