The Falcons have continued to take plenty of heat for selecting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. just over a month after signing Kirk Cousins as a free agent.
On Tuesday, assistant General Manager Kyle Smith reiterated that Atlanta wanted to create long-term stability at the game’s most important position. Since Smith joined the team in 2021 alongside G.M. Terry Fontenot, that had been a concern for Atlanta’s front office.
“It was an unsettling feeling, sitting there in ’21,” Smith said, via Terrin Waack of the team’s website. “I’ll never forget sitting there with Terry and being like, ‘OK, well, what’s our future? What’s our plan for the future? How are we going to solidify down the road?’
“It’s not just about this year or next year. It’s about five years, minimum.”
The Falcons had three top-10 picks in the last three seasons before taking Penix at No. 8, using all three on offensive weapons. But according to Smith, “This is the first year that we were sitting there and staring down the barrel at a player that we think can be that guy.”
But with the investment Atlanta made in Cousins, it’s clear that he is at least the quarterback of the present.
“What we did to get Kirk Cousins should tell everybody what we believe in Kirk Cousins,” Smith said. “He’s our guy. We set ourselves up.
“Then, in the draft, Michael Penix was there. It’s a quarterback — a young quarterback — that we believe in. We pulled that trigger. … I mean, that’s as clear as I can say it.”
And so now the Falcons feel they have created a situation for sustained success at quarterback.
“For the next five years, we feel great about the position,” Smith said. “Minimum.”