Falcons' Raheem Morris Explains Michael Penix Jr.'s Limited Snaps in NFL Preseason

Atlanta Falcons fans will not get to see much of Michael Penix Jr. this preseason because head coach Raheem Morris believes he saw enough in practice and his limited game action.

ESPN's Marc Raimondi noted Monday that Morris said Penix, who did not play in Saturday's game against the Baltimore Ravens, will also sit out Friday's preseason finale against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

"You've seen the amount of reps that Michael's been able to get [in practice] without really taking away from our starters and Kirk [Cousins] and it's been awesome," Morris said. "And I don't see that varying at all in his developmental plan, even moving into the season. Because he'll be able to have 100% of the reps versus our defense. And he's getting I don't know how many reps versus our starting defense now."

Penix also saw opportunities against a defense outside of Atlanta's during the team's joint practices with the Miami Dolphins ahead of their preseason game.

There will also be an intra-team scrimmage during Wednesday's practice that will give the Washington product game-like repetitions.

"I'll be able to get a nice look at him on Wednesday," Morris said. "And [see] some of the problems and the things that we want to see if he can actually grasp and hold onto a little bit more, from our standpoint, which he's done a great job of getting better, throughout this process."

Atlanta turned to Taylor Heinicke and undrafted rookie John Paddock during the game against Baltimore and will likely do the same against the Jaguars.

While the practice time is clearly valuable, it is still rather unusual to see a team's projected backup quarterback play so few snaps during the preseason. Penix went 9-of-16 for 104 yards, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions in that game against the Dolphins and will not play meaningful snaps again this season unless Cousins suffers an injury or performs uncharacteristically poorly.

The Falcons surely believe the 24-year-old Penix will be an important part of their future, otherwise they would not have selected him with the No. 8 overall pick of the 2024 NFL draft.

But as long as Cousins, who is signed through the 2027 campaign, lives up to expectations, Penix will be on the sidelines.

Perhaps he will play more snaps during next year's preseason schedule.