The Falcons are expected to bench veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins in favor of rookie Michael Penix for their Week 16 matchup with the Giants, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Falcons head coach Raheem Morris released a statement confirming the switch under center: “After review we have made the decision Michael Penix will be the Atlanta Falcons starting quarterback moving forward. This was a football decision and we are fully focused on preparing the team for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.”
Cousins has struggled in recent weeks, culminating in an especially rough game against the Raiders in Week 15. The veteran signal-caller completed just 11 of his 17 passing attempts for 112 yards, one touchdown, and one interception on Monday night, leading reporters to ask Morris about Cousins’ level of play.
“He’s got to play better, said Morris, via ProFootball Talk’s Mike Florio. “We’ve got to find a way to get him to play better.”
Morris was then asked about the possibility of replacing Cousins with Penix, the eighth overall pick in this past April’s draft. Morris’ answer fueled speculation that he was considering such a move: “We’ve got everybody on our roster for a reason, right?…Those things will always be discussed. That’s just the nature of the beast in football. It’s just so heavily talked about at the quarterback position because there’s only one guy out there.”
The same questions resurfaced during Morris’ Tuesday presser. His non-answer hinted that his staff was already thinking about benching Cousins.
“We still have to go through that process,” said Morris (via Josh Kendall of The Athletic). “All those things will happen over the course of the week. We didn’t play well enough at the quarterback position.”
More to come.