Michael Penix Jr. didn’t just get shut out in Carolina, he got shut down. And the same could be said for his placement in NFL Spin Zone's Sayre Bedinger's Week 3 QB Power Rankings. The Falcons' signal-caller plummeted to No. 29 overall, sliding six spots from last week’s ranking.
That leaves him only ahead of backups Jake Browning and Tyrod Taylor, and 40-year-old Joe Flacco. Penix has had a rocky start to his sophomore season. In three games, he’s completing just 58.6% of his passes with one touchdown, two interceptions, and a 71.3 passer rating.
Michael Penix Jr gets shafted in latest power rankings
- Week 1 vs. Tampa Bay (L, 20-23): Penix looked sharp, throwing for 298 yards and a touchdown while completing over 64% of his passes. He engineered an 18 play go ahead drive late in the fourth quarter that nearly stole the win.
- Week 2 @ Minnesota (W, 22-6): The rookie was more of a game manager, but efficient. 13 of 21 for 135 yards against Brian Flores’ blitz heavy defense showed maturity, even without a passing touchdown.
- Week 3 @ Carolina (L, 0-30): The disaster game. Penix hit just 50% of his throws, managed 172 yards, and tossed two interceptions, including a pick six that buried Atlanta early. His passer rating: 40.5.
The flashes are real, but so are the lows. That’s why Bedinger gave him no mercy.
Quarterback rankings capture the moment, not the trajectory. Right now, Penix is grouped with Taylor and Flacco, but the bigger picture tells a different story.
He’s made only six career starts, hardly enough to judge a long term ceiling. History shows patience often pays off: Josh Allen’s passer rating through his first six games was just 61.8, Peyton Manning threw 11 interceptions in his first three weeks, and Jalen Hurts was even benched at halftime of his third start. All of them turned into franchise quarterbacks.
The Falcons also drafted Penix with the idea that he’d grow alongside Bijan Robinson and Drake London, forming the young offensive core of the future. Calls for Kirk Cousins to return aren’t new, but they ignore reality. Cousins threw 16 interceptions in 14 starts last year, and no team wanted him this offseason.
Bedinger's rankings may have dropped Michael Penix Jr. near the bottom, but rankings don’t determine whether he’s a franchise quarterback. Only time, and Atlanta’s patience, will.
The rookie has shown both talent (Week 1) and promise (Week 2). Week 3 was ugly, no doubt. But unless the Falcons want to stay stuck in quarterback purgatory, they’ll need to ride out the bumps.
In the NFL, one bad Sunday can tank your ranking, but one good month can change the narrative entirely.