The Falcons have agreed to terms with rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr., according to multiple reports.
Penix, the No. 8 overall pick, receives a four-year, $22.88 million deal that includes a fifth-year option. His signing bonus is $13.46 million.
With his signing, the Falcons now have their eight-player draft class under contract.
The Falcons’ selection of Penix was the biggest surprise of the 2024 draft as it came only six weeks after the team signed Kirk Cousins in free agency. The Falcons owe Cousins $100 million over the next two years, so Penix is expected to sit behind Cousins for two years.
Penix, 24, hasn’t gone into the season as a backup since 2018.
He won the Maxwell Award, annually given to the nation’s most outstanding player and finished second in Heisman voting in 2023.
In his six seasons of college football — four at Indiana and two at the University of Washington — he made 45 starts and completed 63.3 percent of his passes for 13,741 yards, 96 touchdowns and 34 interceptions.
The Falcons started three different quarterbacks the past two seasons as they attempted to replace Matt Ryan. They now not only have replaced him but have a succession plan for Cousins, who turns 36 in August.