MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- Falcons rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. was solid against the Dolphins in his NFL debut in an exhibition game on Friday at Hard Rock Stadium.
“It’s good to be back out there,” he said.
Penix flashed the big passing arm that convinced the Falcons to draft him with the eighth overall pick out of Washington. He completed a pretty deep ball to wide receiver Chris Blair for a 41-yard gain.
On an early play, he found wide receiver Casey Washington over the middle after his first option was taken away. He flicked the ball to Washington for a 16-yard gain and avoided a sack.
He also got hit a couple of times.
“I got to feel the protection on that, so that was on me,” Penix said. “Yeah, I was saying that before the game that I just want to get hit one time. Quarterbacks, we don’t get hit until game time. To be able to get hit, get back up and just continue to keep playing.”
He played five series and guided the Falcons to a field goal and a touchdown. The score was 10-10 when he exited. Taylor Heinicke came on and quickly fumbled a snap from center that led to a Miami touchdown.
“I feel like I did OK,” Penix said. “There are some things that I definitely want to get better at. I feel like I executed the offense the best that I could. I definitely had one mistake. The fans wouldn’t notice it, but in our offense I know it.
Penix completed 9 of 16 passes for 104 yards. He finished with a passer rating of 76.
“Other than that, just trying to get points on the board whenever I was out there, we were able to get some points, but we want to score every drive,” Penix said.
There were other mistakes that most would not have noticed.
“I looked the wrong way on a play, but I found the check down,” Penix said.
Penix is looking for some more exhibition-season action.
“I was ready,” Penix said. “I’ve been ready to play for the longest. It’s just football for me.”
Penix has been establishing a connection with wide receiver Rondale Moore, but he went down with a season-ending injury in the joint practices with the Dolphins on Wednesday.
In the game, Penix threw seven of 16 pass attempts at rookie wide receiver Casey Washington.
“Yeah, throughout OTAs, training camp, whatever it was, every time we got reps together, we found something between us,” Washington said. “I just think that’s something, it’s a positive thing. “
Washington led the Falcons with three receptions. He had 27 yards. Chris Blair had two catches for 45 yards.
Washington was pleased to be so busy.
“I’m going to take that and run with it,” Washington said. “If he’s going to throw me the ball, I got to find a way to get there and make the play. Whoever the quarterback is, if that’s Michael Penix, wherever he’s going to throw the ball, I need to be there to make the play.”
The stage didn’t appear too big for Penix.
“I always say the game is easier than practice,” Penix said. “I don’t know why. I think it’s because of our defense see our looks so many times, it’s hard to get completions against them. But in-game, I feel like the routes (are) wide open and it’s slower than practice.”
Penix knows that Kirk Cousins in the Falcons’ starter. But he has an important role too.
“Every game means a lot,” Penix said. “We didn’t come out with a win today. That’s something that we wanted, and we’re not proud of it. Obviously, there’s a lot of things that we’ve got on film, put on tape that are good and that we can take from.
“But it’s a lot of things we can learn from, too. We’re a team – it (doesn’t) matter (exhibition) season, playoffs, regular season, we want to win. We didn’t get that done today, but man I I (saw) a lot of great things out of the guys around me.”
Penix liked his throw to Blair that resulted in the 41-yard gain.
“Yeah, I told him ‘CB’ (Blair) I’ll give him a chance on the vertical route,” Penix said. “He won off the release -- if he’s that open, I’ve got to be able to deliver a good ball so he can continue running. We connected like that.”
The Bow Tie Chronicles
About the Author
