When Atlanta Falcons fans saw Michael Penix Jr. take a shot in Sunday Night's loss to the Baltimore Ravens, they instantly assumed the worst. Even though he managed to return for a play in regulation, it was worrisome that the rib injury he suffered was painful enough to keep him on the sideline in OT.
And because Tua Tagovailoa threw a game-losing interception in overtime, it looked even more alarming--especially in regards to his status for Week 6 against the Chicago Bears. A QB with the injury history of Penix is certainly going to give a fanbase heart palpitations every time he goes down.
But it turns out that former top-10 pick was right when he said this injury wasn't gonna be a long-term thing. He said he expected himself to be out there on Sunday, and while addressing the media yesterday, Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski gave an update that supported that sentiment.
Stefanski told reporters Penix would practice on Wednesday, which bodes well for his Week 6 status, but that's not all. He revealed that the young quarterback is on track to start on Sunday afternoon, and that he expects him to start against the Bears barring any setbacks from the rib injury in practice.
And given Penix has missed enough time in his career, this is the best-case scenario. Any sort of crippling fear that this was worse than we thought is officially gone, and given the way he got hit, it's safe to say Atlanta dodged a bullet since there was no fracture. Plus, no one wants to see Tua start.
Michael Penix Jr.'s Week 5 injury should not affect his status for Week 6
Penix even admitted after the game that had the Falcons started with the football in overtime, he would've been out there, but after the Ravens milked the clock in overtime, the pain became too much to manage because it got stuff. If only Jeff Ulbrich's defense was able get off the field sooner.
This felt like more of a pain tolerance thing than anything else, and it also looked like he got the wind knocked out of him. But Stefanski knows what he's dealing with, so they want to exercise some level of caution, but it also seems more likely than not that the 26-year-old is out there on the 18th.
The difference between the Falcons' offense with Michael Penix Jr. out there versus any of the other QBs is a night-and-day difference. The 2024 first-round pick has finally looked like a franchise guy, as he's been the best deep-ball passer in football this year and is near the top of the QB leaderboard in several statistics, including EPA success rate, yards per attempt, and play-action EPA per play.
The Dirty Birds are facing a Bears offense that has no shortage of star power--and Caleb Williams is expected to return--so they can't afford to go into this matchup shorthanded, especially under center. And the only way they'll be able to keep up with Chicago is if Penix plays--which he should.
Michael Penix Jr. has been a revelation for the Falcons this season, so knowing not only is this not going to sideline him for an extended period of time, but likely won't at all is fantastic because any absence of his would've had the potential to derail the season like we saw in Weeks 1 and 2--especially since this is the toughest stretch of their schedule.
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