Atlanta Falcons announce Michael Penix Jr. will start 'moving forward,' Kirk Cousins heads to bench

The Atlanta Falcons are making a massive move, and will start eighth-overall pick Michael Penix Jr. at quarterback against the New York Giants on Sunday. Kirk Cousins, who was the starter until now, will head to the bench.

A move to Penix is not necessarily a surprise given Cousins’ struggles in 2024 as he joined the Falcons as a free agent coming off a torn Achilles in his mid 30s. It’s a gamble nonetheless, but one the Falcons feel is worth making with a playoff berth still very much in play.

Statement from Falcons HC Raheem Morris: pic.twitter.com/qlcF0zIhZd

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 18, 2024

“After review we have made the decision Michael Penix Jr. will be the Atlanta Falcons starting quarterback moving forward,” head coach Raheem Morris said in a statement. “This was a football decision and we are fully focused on preparing the team for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.”

Cousins has completed 66.9% of his passes for 3508 yards and an 18:16 TD:INT ratio in 14 games as the starter. Atlanta is 7-7 in those games, and currently sits in second place in the NFC South, behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 8-6.

Penix has appeared in a pair of games this season, both lopsided losses for the Falcons, and gone 3-for-5 for 38 yards. He has not played since Nov. 17.

There was another quarterback swap made on Tuesday

Per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Tennessee Titans will be benching Will Levis and turning to Mason Rudolph as their starting quarterback.

“The Tennessee Titans are planning to make a switch at quarterback this week, source told ESPN,” Fowler tweeted this afternoon. “Mason Rudolph is the logical candidate to step in for starter Will Levis, who likely heads to the bench barring surprise.”

This comes after a four-turnover outing for Levis this past weekend in a 37-27 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. He threw three interceptions, a new career-high, and lost a fumble with Cincinnati scoring on each of those. The first three, the fumble and two picks, turned a 14-7 lead into a 24-14 halftime deficit for Tennessee. He then threw a pick-six in the middle of the third quarter that led to his in-game benching for Rudolph.

Rudolph would finish the game going 21-26 (80.8%) for 209 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. That’s after Levis finished 8-12 (66.7%) for 89 yards and the three interceptions.

In missing three games and most of another due to a shoulder injury, Levis is 181-284 (63.7%) in passing this season for 1,916 yards with a dozen touchdowns and interceptions apiece. Add in the five lost fumbles, though, and he has scored 0.7 times to every one turnover this year. Include his splits from his rookie season in replacing Ryan Tannehill and, in 20 games as a pro, Levis has posted 61.2% completion for 186.2 passing yards along with an average of 1.1 for both total touchdowns scored and turnovers.

In his 20 career starts, Tennessee is 4-16 overall, including 1-9 in 2024.