The Falcons don’t need a bridge quarterback to sort out Michael Penix Jr.
That’s the real issue in Atlanta right now, not whether another veteran passer could be dropped into the room and asked to steady things. ESPN’s Ben Solak floated the idea of the Falcons signing Seattle Seahawks quarterback Drew Lock in 2027, but that only muddies a situation Atlanta should be forcing to clarity.
Penix has already given the Falcons two very different versions of himself, and the contrast is the whole story. In his first two starts, both wins over Green Bay and New Orleans, he looked like a quarterback the team could build around. Atlanta beat the Packers 35-14 at Lambeau Field in Week 3, then followed it with a 45-24 road win over the Saints to move to 2-2.
That stretch had people talking fast. Penix threw an interception on the opening possession against Green Bay, then settled in. A week later, in a hostile Superdome setting on the anniversary of the Saints’ return to the building after Hurricane Katrina, he kept the Falcons moving and helped them handle their arch rival.
Through those two games, Penix completed 33 of 45 passes for 479 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Atlanta scored 80 points in those wins.
Then came the other side of the ledger. In losses to Tampa Bay and Cincinnati in Weeks 8 and 9, Penix completed 28 of 55 passes for 287 yards, one touchdown and five interceptions. The Falcons scored just 17 points across those two games.
The Tampa Bay loss came in a downpour, so the 8-of-24, four-interception line can’t be laid entirely at his feet. But the Madrid game was under a closed roof, and 162 passing yards didn’t offer much comfort either.
That’s why the Falcons don’t need Drew Lock to come in and make the decision for them. Solak praised Lock’s play this season, writing that he’s “trusting his eyes and feet, in timing with the route, better than I can ever remember him doing.
Look at some of these throws!” He also argued that “In a Kyle Shanahan-inspired system that asks a golden-armed pocket passer to just grip it and rip it into middle-of-the-field windows, Lock feels eminently playable,” and added, “I love his fit with the Falcons, as he could bring much of what Michael Penix Jr. has this season but with better mobility and better accuracy from unsure throwing platforms.”
Lock has been productive in a small sample. Filling in for Sam Darnold, he has completed 54 of 76 passes for 597 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions in three games, two of them starts, and Seattle has won all three.
But Atlanta doesn’t need another quarterback competition. It needs an answer.
Penix is the bridge if the Falcons want one. If he doesn’t improve the position by season’s end, and if he stays healthy enough to reach 27 career starts, then the next move should be aimed at the 2027 draft.
That’s where the Falcons should be looking anyway. If Penix proves the first two starts were the real thing, they have their quarterback. If the last two are the truth, the losses will keep piling up, and the draft position will keep getting better.
At 3-6, Atlanta would need to go 6-2 just to finish with a winning record, and a quarterback with five interceptions in his last two games isn’t exactly the guy to carry that kind of push.
The Falcons have eight games left to learn what they have in Penix. They don’t need Lock to help them figure it out. They need to let Penix decide their future, or use the 2027 draft to find the next one.
In Other News...
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The Falcons have already shown that shift in other ways, including trading Ryan Neuzil and locking in younger players on new contracts. Bates exit leaves a notable leadership void on a defense that valued his experience and voice, and it also adds another layer to a roster reset that is clearly still unfolding. [Read more 🡒]
Drake London Gives Falcons Fans Another Reason To Be Frustrated
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London was also fined $12,537 for a separate unnecessary roughness penalty against the Buccaneers, pushing his total for the month past $36,000. For a Falcons team that has dropped two straight, the discipline issues around one of its top pass catchers only add to the frustration around a stretch that already feels too familiar. [Read more 🡒]