Kirk Cousins and the rest of the NFL were absolutely shocked when the Atlanta Falcons selected Michael Penix Jr. with their first selection in the 2024 draft. They did this despite breaking the bank for Cousins to get him from the Minnesota Vikings, and signing him to a four year deal.
There does not seem to be any type of quarterback competition at all in camp, and that is not something that is going to change any time soon.
Kirk Cousins Addresses Michael Penix Jr. In The Media
![Kirk Cousins Gives Honest Assessment of Michael Penix Jr. At Practice 1 Kirk Cousins Michael Penix Jr.](https://gridironheroics.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/USATSI_23461098_168400517_lowres-300x200.jpg)
When speaking to the media on Thursday, Cousins said that working with Penix has been “great.’ Cousins seemed to be very happy with the quarterback room that now features Taylor Heinicke as well. Cousins referred to all of the guys in the quarterback with him as real assets to the team.
“It’s been great,” Cousins said, via ProFootballTalk. “You know, it continues to be kind of that working force together. There’s so much we all are kind of having to learn right now and grow together in. And so we’re doing that.
“Michael’s doing great. John’s doing great. Taylor’s awesome. It’s so good to have a person in the room who’s started dozens of games and has been in the fire and really has that experience. I love being able to lean on that. So, Taylor’s been a huge asset.”
Cousins is coming off a season ending Achilles injury that he suffered at the beginning of the 2023 season. The Vikings let him walk and he signed the monstrous $180 million contract with the Falcons to be their quarterback for at least the next four seasons.
All of that just made the draft pick of Penix even more confusing, as it was reported around draft time that Kirk was absolutely shocked by the pick and did not receive any heads up about the pick.
Per Gridiron Heroics Matt Lombardo:
According to a report from NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah, Mike McCartney, Cousins’ agent, was not given a heads-up that the Falcons were going to take Penix Jr.
It is one thing to select a rookie quarterback to potentially groom as the face of the franchise for years to come, but it is something a bit different to do so without giving the veteran quarterback already on your roster a warning that you’re planning on going that direction.
While there is no actual quarterback competition in Atlanta, they certainly have the most interesting quarterback situation in the NFL now.
Related: Kirk Cousins And Atlanta Falcons Fans Are Not Happy With 1st Round Pick
![Kirk Cousins Gives Honest Assessment of Michael Penix Jr. At Practice 2 Kirk Cousins](https://gridironheroics.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/USATSI_22241395-300x200.jpg)
1 Comment
Why would Atlanta tell Kirk’s agent about Penix when they didn’t know if he would be available and risk information getting linked that would allow other interested teams to leap frog them?