The Atlanta Falcons may have enough time for their former first round pick to take the reigns.
The Atlanta Falcons are a few weeks away from the start of the regular season still, but the big development this week was the healthy return to practice for Michael Penix Jr. after he had been held out.
Penix did not fall completely behind since he was able to do a wide range of things, but he was not cleared for 11 on 11 to start camp, which the coaching staff indicated would prevent a quarterback battle. Now that Penix is back though perhaps a bit earlier than it seemed he could be, the question everyone is asking if of course his chances of playing in Week 1.
With a legitimate runway here to ramp up, it seems very conceivable he can do just that, and one of the league's most in the know insiders echoed that sentiment this week after Penix was cleared.
Ian Rapoport Believes Penix Can Win Falcons QB1 Job
"Tua's play made [bringing Penix along slowly] impossible, Rapoport said. "This is Michael Penix's job for the taking. If he comes out and plays as well as he can, it actually could create the best case scenario for the Atlanta Falcons."
Rapoport even took things a step further, saying that if Penix in a new system is able to seize the job, it maybe would show the organization that he is not just the best guy for the present of the franchise, but also the future. Many in the fanbase have given up on Penix as the face of the team due to various struggles and injuries, but flashes have been shown, and potentially the addition of Kevin Stefanski is exactly what the young lefty needs to jump start his career.
Penix still has a number of fans within the organization, and a staff capable of elevating his game to the next level could do just that and solve a massive question which will be facing this regime over the next year or two.
For now, he needs to take things day by day and continue to show the staff why he is the man for the job right now, but there could be something bigger going on with Penix this season as he auditions for his future with Atlanta. Time will tell how the Falcons organization goes about solving the quarterback question, but Penix is hungry to throw his hat right back into the ring.
