Falcons HC Raheem Morris makes Michael Penix Jr. and Kirk Cousins decision for NFL preseason debut vs Lions

Michael Penix Jr. won the quarterback battle. The Atlanta Falcons will now prepare for the NFL 2025 season with him under center, instead of Kirk Cousins. Usually, starting quarterbacks are not as prominent on preseason but backups do. Hence, there was some doubt about how the team would manage them on their debut vs. Detroit Lions and head coach Raheem Morris just provided new bits of information about it.

Well, at least for the first game Morris was as clear as water. “Penix won’t get out there, Kirk won’t get out there,” Morris said during his Monday press conference. “So, we’ll see [Easton] Stick, we’ll see Emory [Jones]. That’s probably the most definitive thing I can tell you right now. There will be a lot of guys playing, and there will be a couple that won’t.”

However, Morris did say that the team is young, therefore they might get some reps. “Obviously, we have a young football team, so there will be a lot more people playing than we had last year,” Morris said. “We’ll have a couple young guys out there that’s got to go out there and show some competitive things. You’ve got some positions that are up for battles.” Preseason will be very important for the Falcons.

Cousins not suiting up is concerning to a degree

Kirk Cousins is not a guy to settle with being an NFL backup. Cousins has been a regular NFL starter for a decade. He won’t just accept going to the bench. Plenty of the talk early in the offseason was for him to get traded. However, nothing came to fruition.

Kirk Cousins #18 of the Atlanta Falcons reacts after giving up an interception to Lavonte David #54 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the fourth quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

You’d assume that Cousins wants the opportunity to make his stock rise again and playing on preseason games against lesser competition would entice him. However, the risk of injury does exist, so it’s more about what Cousins prioritizes. Still, it’s somewhat shocking that he won’t play. Maybe in later preseason games he will take some snaps.

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Michael Penix Jr. receives big-time news regarding Falcons’ key weapon to start training camp

Falcons expectations are high this season

Penix Jr. will try to present a better face of what the team offered last season. He has very good weapons to do so. Drake London and Darnell Mooney are a very good receiving duo. Pair that with a star in Bijan Robinson at running back and Kyle Pitts as the tight end, the offense should be very good.

The defense have some talent too. Morgan Fox came from the Chargers, David Onyemata is still there on the trenches. The Falcons also brought two key players to the linebacker corp in Leonard Floyd and Divine Deablo. The secondary has also being reinforced with free safety Jordan Fuller. The roster is ready to make a major leap and contend for the playoffs.