Across the first two weeks of the 2026 season, Drake London was pretty much a no-show for this offense. Frankly, there was probably no player on the Atlanta Falcons more adversely affected by starting Cooper Rush, but the return of Michael Penix Jr. was proof of what London could be.
In last week's 35-14 victory over the Green Bay Packers (which was also Penix's season debut), the fifth-year wideout caught nine passes for a career-high 194 yards for one of the best games of his career. And when he's making plays like this, it's sort of a dead giveaway it's just the tip of the iceberg.
Drake London adds to his HUGE night@ATLvsGB on Prime Video
— NFL (@NFL) September 25, 2026
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/0nWsw3vuwJ
Per ESPN's Marc Raimondi, London has surpassed 100 receiving yards in six of the last games started by Penix, and their connection. We know he's best when the 2024 first-round pick is out there, and now that he's good to go after his ACL tear, we now see the sky is the limit for his favorite target.
Drake London is in for a monster year if Michael Penix Jr. can stay healthy
Throughout his career, quarterback play has threatened to be the thing that bogs down Drake London. Between Marcus Mariota, Desmond Ridder, Taylor Heinicke, and Kirk Cousins, No. 5 has never really had much stability under center, but Penix is finally proving he can be a franchise QB.
And there is no one person who his return helps more than London. According to Michael F. Florio, in 15 career games with Michael Penix Jr. as the starting quarterback, his numbers are as follows--and they are out of this world.
- 100 catches
- 1,480 receiving yards
- 9 receiving TDs
That's the sort of season that would catapult him into the tier with the best receivers in the NFL. The 25-year-old has never been looked at as someone in the tier with guys like Ja'Marr Chase, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba because of the QB play, but playing with Penix is a reminder he's just as talented as those guys.
Entering Week 4, London ranks third among all wide receivers with 3.81 yards per route run, and is only behind Zay Flowers (9.36) and JSN (4.35) in this area. Moreover, he currently ranks sixth among all pass-catchers with 274 receiving yards, and even though most of it came on TNF, it goes to show you he'll likely remain near the top of this leaderboard as long as Penix remains the starter.
At 6-foot-4 and 218 pounds, the former top-10 pick has good size, good quickness, good hands and the versatility to both play on the outside and in the slot. That's rare for a wide receiver with his skillset. Teams thought they could turn guys like Keon Coleman and Denzel Boston into their own personal London, but the truth is a true alpha WR1 like this is much harder to find than we realize.
The Falcons gave their star wideout a lucrative four-year, $141 million extension this offseason which came in at nearly $40 million in average annual value. They evidently believe in him enough to make him the third-highest paid receiver in the NFL even though they don't have a long-term answer under center yet.
As of right now, everybody sees Drake London as a good-not-great wide receiver, but now that Michael Penix Jr. is healthy and Tommy Rees can dial up the deep shots, he's finally starting to get his flowers as one of those elite wideouts.
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