MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – After winning the toss in their first preseason game against the Miami Dolphins, the Falcons elected to receive the opening kickoff.
The new kickoff rules have been well documented, so after the game head coach Raheem Morris was asked whether or not the rule change had anything to do with the Falcons' decision to send the offense out first.
Oh, not really, no.
"You know," Morris said, "really I was just excited about seeing Michael if I'm just being completely honest."
That's Michael Penix Jr., and Falcons faithful – and the league at large – got a first look at Atlanta's No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft when the team hit the Hard Rock Stadium field Friday night.
Penix got the start at quarterback for the Falcons, staying in the spot for five series through the first and second quarter before Taylor Heinicke came in at quarterback halfway through the second quarter.
"(I had) no nerves, no jitters," Penix said of his preseason debut. "I was just ready to go."
Penix finished his outing going 9-of-16 through the air with 104 passing yards and a 56.3% completion rate. By comparison, fellow quarterbacks Heinicke and Nathan Rourke finished the night with a combined stat line of 7-of-24 through the air with 48 total passing yards. Penix's longest pass came in the Falcons' third series. It was a 41-yard catch-and-run by Chris Blair, whose fumble following a completion a few minutes before ended the Falcons' second series just as quickly as it began.
"I feel like I did OK," Penix said of his overall performance. "There are definitely some things that I want to get better."
While running off the field at halftime, Morris said he "felt really good" about Penix individually, but added the offensive operation was sloppy as a whole. After the game, he elaborated.
"We got a little pass-happy with him, obviously being our first-round quarterback, but it was fun seeing him go out there and execute some of the pass plays and get some of that stuff done," Morris said. "... It was a pretty good night for him, and I was pleased by what he was able to do."
It was obvious who Penix was favoring in the pass game Friday. Of his 16 total passing attempts, seven went to fellow rookie Casey Washington, the Falcons' Day 3 pick out of Illinois. However, of those seven passes, only two were caught. Washington put the brunt of those misses on himself, while Penix felt he left some completions on the table, too.
"There were a couple plays out there where Mike gave me a great ball, and I just gotta make that play, man," Washington said. "I just gotta find a way to get there and make that play. ... I gotta watch the tape. I gotta digest it, and I gotta make that play."
Washington's role in this offense will be something to monitor as the Falcons were forced to put Rondale Moore on injured reserve Thursday after he suffered a knee injury in Atlanta's second of two joint practices with Miami.
By Friday night, it was obvious there was a connection between Penix and Washington, even if it wasn't perfect. And at this point, Morris said that's OK. That's what evaluations are for. It's why you have days of joint practices and preseason games.
And truly, this is all notorious territory for a new quarterback/wide receiver pairing running in a new offensive system. Growing pains are to be expected. But even in the growing pains, you still see the vision. And if you can't see it, you can hear it, running back Carlos Washington said.
"(Penix) is confident," Carlos Washington said. "He's a pro. Of course there are times when you have to tell him to take a deep breath or something, but other than that? He's going to be a guy, for sure."
