By CHARLES ODUM AP Sports Writer
ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons are turning to rookie Michael Penix Jr. as their starting quarterback and benching veteran Kirk Cousins as they fight for their first playoff berth since 2017.
Coach Raheem Morris announced the decision in a statement Tuesday night.
“After review we have made the decision Michael Penix Jr. will be the Atlanta Falcons’ starting quarterback moving forward,” Morris said. “This was a football decision and we are fully focused on preparing the team for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.”
The Falcons (7-7) ended a four-game losing streak with Monday night’s ugly 15-9 win at Las Vegas. Cousins passed for 112 yards with one touchdown — his first TD pass in five games — and one interception. The 36-year-old has thrown nine picks over the past five games and leads the NFL with 16 interceptions.
Atlanta signed Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract in the offseason with $100 million guaranteed before selecting Penix No. 8 overall in the NFL draft.
Cousins ended his touchdown drought with a 30-yard scoring pass to Drake London in the first quarter but had few other highlights against the woeful Raiders.
“It’s not where I want to be,” he said of his performance. “There’s a lot of room for improvement and we’d like to finish a lot stronger here these last three weeks.”
The Falcons made the switch about three hours after Morris told reporters he wasn’t ready to make a decision on this week’s starter.
“We talked about it last night,” Morris said. “You know, there’s no secret. We didn’t play well enough at the quarterback position, and we’ve got to find ways to play better. So, all those things over the course of the week and we’ve got to do whatever is best to win versus the Giants.”
The quarterback move comes with the Falcons still contending for the NFC South title. Atlanta is one game behind division-leading Tampa Bay, but the Falcons hold the tiebreaker advantage.
Penix has appeared in only two games, completing 3 of 5 passes for 38 yards. He was the Heisman Trophy runner-up in 2023, when he passed for 4,903 yards with 36 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for Washington.
Cousins had a strong start to the season, leading the Falcons to a 6-3 start and first place in the division. He has completed 66.9% of his passes, exactly matching his standard for his 13-year career. He has passed for 3,508 yards but has an unhealthy ratio of 18 touchdown passes to 16 interceptions.
Morris acknowledged it appeared Cousins’ confidence has been shaken by his recent struggles.
“I’m not trying to sugarcoat this thing for him,” Morris said. “He’s not trying to sugarcoat it for himself. … When you go through the stress that we’re going through right now, you’re not going to have that same confidence and the same swagger that you had in the first, two months or three months, whatever it was, of the season.”
Morris has consistently said the plan was for Cousins to handle the job this season while Penix prepared to take over at some point in the future. Morris was reluctant to veer from than plan before Tuesday night, though he said earlier in the day he saw no downside if he chose to start Penix.
The first-year coach has praised the way Penix has handled the backup role.
“You could never say there’s a downside to turn it over to somebody that you put a lot of investment into, somebody that you brought in here, somebody you’ve done some things with, somebody that’s done nothing but the right thing since they’ve been here,” Morris said.
Morris added he was “just being really smart and cautious in how we go about our business” in sticking with Cousins through his recent struggles.
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