The very next game was Penix’s first prime-time moment.
When the Falcons played the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium in Week 17, it marked the first time in NFL history that two first-round rookie quarterback started in the same prime-time game. The Commanders’ Jayden Daniels was the No. 2 overall pick in Penix’s draft class.
That “Sunday Night Football” game went to overtime, where the Commanders pulled through with a 30-24 win.
Penix enters this second spotlight opportunity with an 0-1 Falcons team looking to quickly rebound. He completed 27 of his 42 passes for 298 yards and a 50-yard touchdown to running back Bijan Robinson in Atlanta’s 23-20 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Sunday. Penix also kept the ball six times for 21 yards rushing and a 4-yard touchdown.
The 25-year-old was definitely a highlight for the Falcons in Week 1.
“He’s been excellent,” Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said postgame. “He’s been poised in great moments and he’s been poised in big moments and he’s been poised in moments like that just then. I can’t say enough positive things about the young man and what he was able to do, even up to his last throw, potentially giving us a chance to win it in regulation.”
Penix could continue to make Falcons history this Sunday, too. Not just prime-time. His 1,035 career passing yards in four starts marks the most by a Falcons quarterback all-time. If he throws for more than 242 yards in Minnesota, he’ll surpass Mike Moroski for the five-start record.
Basically, in just his second professional season, Penix is already making his name known on a local and national level.
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