Michael Penix
23-Year-Old
2023 Pass/Rush Stats
YDS
0
TD
0
INT
0
YDS
0
TD
0
2024 Projections
2024 Fantasy Outlook
Penix was the surprise pick of this year’s draft. Not necessarily because he went in the top 10, but because it was the Falcons who drafted him eighth overall. Atlanta just signed Kirk Cousins to a four-year deal with $100 million guaranteed in March, which means Penix is headed to the bench. The left-hander has a cannon for an arm, the strongest in this year’s draft, and is an accurate downfield passer who also consistently hits tight windows. While the 6-2 Penix is skilled at working through progressions, he at times was inaccurate on intermediate targets because he threw a beat late and lacked touch. The biggest knock, though, is his medical history -- season-ending injuries to both shoulders and two ACL tears in his right knee at Indiana before transferring to Washington. Despite the injuries, he’s still “functionally mobile” and was sacked just 32 times on more than 1,700 dropbacks. At Washington, he led the nation in passing yards per game each of the last two seasons. At Atlanta, he’s the backup, but the 36-year-old Cousins is coming off a midseason Achilles injury and, unlike Penix, doesn’t have a downfield arm. If Penix gets a shot, he’ll have quality weapons in RB Bijan Robinson, WR Drake London and TE Kyle Pitts. Stay Tuned. Read Past Outlooks
Goes eighth overall to Atlanta
The Falcons selected Penix in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, eighth overall.
ANALYSIS
It's a stunning pick for Atlanta to make, both because Penix wasn't expected to go this high and because the Falcons just gave Kirk Cousins a four-year, $180 million contract. Penix will be about 24.5 years old as a rookie, and he'll have no shot to play anytime soon if Cousins is healthy. Penix in any case boasts a uniquely strong arm, and he was memorably good at avoiding sacks as a college quarterback. Before Penix emerged as a star passer for Washington he did his best to carry the Indiana program before that, but unsurprisingly he found it easier to move the ball in a Washington offense with three NFL receivers and two NFL tackles. Despite possessing a 40-yard dash time just under the 4.60 mark, Penix very rarely attempted to run in college and therefore is unlikely to leverage his speed in the form of rushing production at the NFL level. It's possible that Penix's lack of rushing activity was influenced somewhat by his injury history, as he tore his ACL twice (2018 and 2020).
It's a stunning pick for Atlanta to make, both because Penix wasn't expected to go this high and because the Falcons just gave Kirk Cousins a four-year, $180 million contract. Penix will be about 24.5 years old as a rookie, and he'll have no shot to play anytime soon if Cousins is healthy. Penix in any case boasts a uniquely strong arm, and he was memorably good at avoiding sacks as a college quarterback. Before Penix emerged as a star passer for Washington he did his best to carry the Indiana program before that, but unsurprisingly he found it easier to move the ball in a Washington offense with three NFL receivers and two NFL tackles. Despite possessing a 40-yard dash time just under the 4.60 mark, Penix very rarely attempted to run in college and therefore is unlikely to leverage his speed in the form of rushing production at the NFL level. It's possible that Penix's lack of rushing activity was influenced somewhat by his injury history, as he tore his ACL twice (2018 and 2020).
NFL Stats
Loading NFL Stats...
Fantasy/Red Zone Stats
See red zone opportunities inside the 20, 10 and 5-yard lines along with the percentage of time they converted the opportunity into a touchdown.
Loading Fantasy/Red Zone Stats...
Advanced NFL Stats
Loading Advanced NFL Stats...
Snap Distribution / Depth Chart
Snap Counts
Snap %
2023 Michael Penix Split Stats
Loading NFL Split Stats...
Measurables Review
View College Player Page
How do Michael Penix's measurables compare to other quarterbacks?
This section compares his draft workout metrics with players at the same position. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that metric and it would be considered average.
Height
6' 2"Weight
216 lbsHand Length
10.50 inArm Length
33.63 in
Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Michael Penix See More
Raiders TE Michael Mayer and Colts WR Adonai Mitchell are two of the many players whose volume projections had to be adjusted downward after the 2024 NFL Draft. RW's Jerry Donabedian breaks it all down.
Saquon Barkley's move to Philly was one of many significant offseason changes, and with the NFL Draft out of the way, Kevin Payne analyzes the fantasy fallout.
Oregon WR Troy Franklin can't be happy about falling to Day 3, but things could still work out for him in Denver, where he'll catch passes from college teammate Bo Nix.
Day 2 of the NFL Draft featured plenty of future fantasy football stars, and Joe Bartel recaps it with analysis for all the rookies you will be drafting this season and beyond.
Latest Fantasy Rumors
Had other suitors in top 10
According to James Palmer of NFL Network, the Seahawks, Saints and Raiders all tried to trade into the top 10 to draft Penix, who ended up going eighth overall to the Falcons in the 2024 NFL Draft.
ANALYSIS
Atlanta's Penix pick was largely panned, mostly because the Falcons gave Kirk Cousins a four-year, $180 million contract earlier in the offseason, but also because Penix was viewed as a reach at eighth overall by most draft experts. With at least three other teams having been interested in drafting Penix, however, Atlanta may not have been the only team to deem him worthy of a top-10 selection. Even so, that doesn't solve the issue of the team having a top-10 pick blocked on the depth chart by a pricey veteran for the foreseeable future.
Atlanta's Penix pick was largely panned, mostly because the Falcons gave Kirk Cousins a four-year, $180 million contract earlier in the offseason, but also because Penix was viewed as a reach at eighth overall by most draft experts. With at least three other teams having been interested in drafting Penix, however, Atlanta may not have been the only team to deem him worthy of a top-10 selection. Even so, that doesn't solve the issue of the team having a top-10 pick blocked on the depth chart by a pricey veteran for the foreseeable future.
More Fantasy News
Posts sub-4.6 40 time at pro day
Penix logged a sub-4.6-second 40-yard dash at University of Washington's Pro Day on Thursday, Brady Henderson of ESPN reports.
ANALYSIS
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Not concerned about injury history
Penix said Friday at the NFL Scouting Combine that his medical exams with all 32 NFL teams went smoothly and he's ready to participate in throwing drills, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
ANALYSIS
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.