Kirk Cousins, Michael Penix Jr., Falcons' QB Plan Assessed by NFL Agent: 'So Weird'

Fans and analysts weren't the only ones perplexed by the Atlanta Falcons' decision to draft Michael Penix Jr. after signing Kirk Cousins to a lucrative contract in free agency.

One NFL player agent told The Athletic's Ben Standig that the Falcons' quarterback plan is "so weird" because it puts everyone in an uncomfortable situation.

"I understand (Cousins' agent, Mike) McCartney's reaction. You convinced me and my guy that you would build a superstar team," the agent added. "I don't want to be critical of the Falcons, but the last thing you need is to draft a backup quarterback that might put undue pressure on Kirk."

Cousins signed a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million guaranteed as a free agent. This seemed like it was going to be the answer to Atlanta's quarterback issues after trading Matt Ryan prior to the start of the 2022 season.

Once the Falcons had Cousins in the fold, logic would suggest they focused their early draft picks on finding an impact pass-rusher that they've been lacking for a long time.

Instead, Atlanta pulled off one of the biggest draft surprises in years by taking Penix with the No. 8 overall pick.

General manager Terry Fontenot explained the decision to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer by saying the team wanted to avoid quarterback "purgatory" by being left without an option whenever Cousins' career ends:

"We do something else right here, and then we win for the next few seasons and then Kirk decides to hang up the cleats, whenever that is, then Michael Penix is somewhere playing at a really high level and we're in quarterback purgatory, we don't have a quarterback. We knew in our heart if we had a lot of people in the building that loved him and expected him to be that player, and he's somewhere else, then that's unforgivable."

The pick was roundly criticized with B/R's Brett Sobleski calling it a "a failure on every single level" between the "awful resource allocation" and "downright atrocious value" before giving it an F grade.

One point of comparison for the Falcons is what the Green Bay Packers did by drafting Jordan Love in 2020 when they had Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers was coming off a down year in 2019 at the age of 36—the same age Cousins is right now—and could easily explain building a succession plan with a first-round quarterback.

There are some key differences that justify Green Bay's approach in ways that don't apply to Atlanta. The Packers were coming off an appearance in the NFC Championship Game the previous season, didn't have as many roster holes as the Falcons currently do and got Love with the No. 26 pick.

Love was also 21 at the time of the 2020 NFL draft. Penix turned 24 on May 8 and has a long injury history from college that includes tearing the ACL in his right knee twice while playing for Indiana.

If Cousins gives the Falcons a few years of high-quality play, then Penix takes over and becomes a quarterback who was worthy of being a top-10 pick, no one will care what happened in the moment during the 2024 draft.