Michael Penix Jr. isn’t putting a date on his return, and he’s not pretending the bigger picture matters more than the knee in front of him.
The Falcons quarterback said he’s focused on getting back to full health before the regular season, even while he’s part of a starting-job battle. For now, Penix says the work is about steady progress, not deadlines.
“I’m not really chasing a timeline. I’m just chasing trying to be better every day,” Penix said, via Pro Football Talk.
“Each and every day I get out there, I look forward to being better than I was the day before. That comes with obviously just the reps, time on task, and also just what I’m doing in the rehab and the treatment room as well, so I can get to where I want to be.”
He made it clear where his attention is landing first.
“I mentioned it before, I can’t worry about a starting job until I’m worried about getting back on the field,” Penix added. “If I can’t be on the field, how am I going to be the starter?
That’s all my focus is right now - just trying to get back and get healthy so that whenever that time comes, then we can talk about the whole starter thing, but that’s not my focus right now. I’m just getting stronger and getting more confident in my knee and everything.
My body has been feeling really good. I’m hitting all my weight goals and making sure I’m taking my diet seriously.
I’m doing everything I can to help my knee get better faster. I’m definitely better than where I was last week.”
There’s another quarterback storyline in Atlanta, too. Tua Tagovailoa said on NFL Network that he still views his situation with Michael Penix as a competition, even with both players dealing with injuries.
“I view it as a competition. I understand he can’t take some team reps right now because of what he’s going through, but he’s still being able to compete in seven-on-seven; he’s still able to go through some plays,” Tagovailoa said, via Pro Football Talk. “It’s definitely a competition.”
Tagovailoa also addressed his back, saying the issue is being handled carefully.
“Nothing too serious, just a caution kind of thing where we’re not rushing it. It was just a flare-up, nothing big, not anything long-term. We’ll be fine,” Tagovailoa added when asked about his back.
In Carolina, Mike Kaye of the Charlotte Observer says Xavier Legette has come back from the offseason looking lighter, quicker and more polished. Kaye writes that the Panthers wideout has lost weight, looks faster, is running downfield routes better and is catching the ball more consistently than he was at this stage a year ago.
Kaye also believes Pat Jones could have a major role early on, especially on early downs opposite Jaelan Phillips. Jones, he noted, showed last season that he can move around the front seven before a season-ending injury cut things short.
On passing downs, Kaye sees Jones being replaced by Princely Umanmielen or Thomas Incoom, with Jones then sliding inside in speed packages.
At receiver, John Metchie hasn’t stood out in a big way, but Kaye also doesn’t view him as a disappointment. He has Metchie behind Tetairoa McMillan, Jalen Coker and Legette, while David Moore, Brycen Tremayne and Ja’seem Reed have each made “several more memorable plays.”
Kaye also noted that Metchie has no background as a return specialist, which makes his path to the active roster harder to see unless Carolina wants a backup slot receiver.
Reed, though, has a real chance. Kaye pointed out that Dave Canales said Reed can play all three receiver spots, and Kaye thinks Reed’s camp performance backs that up. He said Reed is making at least three impressive plays every practice.
At tight end, Kaye sees Tommy Tremble and Mitchell Evans as the best fit to open in 11 personnel, since both can block and catch.
Ja’Tavion Sanders, meanwhile, still has work to do. Kaye said Sanders needs to show he can create problems for linebackers and safeties in 12 personnel as a receiving threat, though he can also be used as a big slot receiver.
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