FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Merry Christmas Eve and Happy Holidays to all!

If gift giving during the holiday season is your thing, well, you're in luck. Because the Dallas Cowboys gave Falcons fans a doozy of a gift in the form of a wild win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Now, the Falcons are back atop the NFC South with a tiebreaker over the Bucs with two games left to play.

According to Next Gen Stats, the 8-7 Falcons have a 54% chance of winning the division with the Commanders and Panthers left on the schedule. Meanwhile, the Bucs sit at 46% with the Panthers and Saints on deck. What will happen? Who's to say?

But one thing is for sure, you've got a lot of questions about the Falcons' quarterback situation after a solid performance from new starter Michael Penix Jr. in a decisive win against the Giants last week. So, let's get into it.

Camereon W. from Snellville, Ga.

Tori, do you think Raheem Morris made the switch to Penix too late? He looked good against the Giants and would have looked even better if it wasn't for some drops by the receivers and tight end. This question will loom large if the Bucs win out and hold on to the division. I personally think Raheem made the switch two games too late. Love to know your thoughts. Oh, and happy holidays!!

Tori: No, I do not, because we have the luxury of hindsight in this moment.

For starters, I agree with what Raheem Morris said a few weeks ago: The Falcons owed it to Kirk Cousins (and honestly, themselves, too) to give him the opportunity to right the ship. If we are looking back at the play from Weeks 10-15, when the Falcons lost four of their five games, you can't put every loss — particularly the early ones — on Cousins' shoulders alone.

I do not blame Cousins for the Saints loss, in which Younghoe Koo missed three field goals. I really don't blame him too much for the loss to the Broncos right before the bye week. Yes, he threw an interception in that game, but his overall performance wasn't the end-all-be-all reason they lost. He still completed 66.7% of his passes for 173 yards. It wasn't great, but it wasn't lose-your-job worthy. And hey, the Falcons had a bye week coming up. At that point everyone needed a break — I know I did, and I am not exerting the physical force those guys are every week.

Coming out of the bye week, everyone felt at that time that the skid would stop. Cousins had gone through some streaky moments in his 13-year career, he'd bounce back. But then the Chargers game happened, and, well, we don't need to revisit it. It was coming off of that performance when the possibility of moving on from Cousins sparked. At the time, though, Morris was adamant Cousins would figure it out.

And though his performance against the Vikings was a little better, how much the Falcons were tailoring the offense to minimize Cousins' workload in Vegas last Monday night was telling. But to my original point, I do not think you pull Cousins for Penix against Minnesota in Week 14. If anything I could have seen Week 15, but with the money you are paying Cousins and the implications of the switch at quarterback? I understand the decision. The Falcons gave Cousins ample opportunities to right the ship. He didn't. And the Falcons had to make a decision. Could they have maybe done so a game earlier against the Raiders? Sure. But I think that was a game that showed the team once and for all that they needed more from the quarterback position, as Morris stated after that game.

The Falcons then presented Penix with the opportunity to face a two-win Giants team that was one of the worst run defenses in the league to face in his first start. Next he'll face the Commanders on the road. So, I think having a confidence boost going into that game was important.

Sam S. from Tampa, Fla.

I was thoroughly impressed by Michael Penix Jr. in his first start. I watched him in college like a lot of people but to see him handle the moment at the pro level was pretty cool to see. Tori, I know you wrote a lot about Penix's performance in your notebook after the game but what was the most impressive part of the start in your opinion?

Tori: It had to be how clean the operation was as a whole. I can talk all day long about the arm talent, but I expected to see that. I can talk all day long about the uptick in explosive plays, but I expected that, too. But how clean the offensive operation was? How the Falcons didn't have any procedural penalties? How Penix never took a sack? How he took care of the ball and limited mistakes? That was something everyone should have been hopeful for, but maybe didn't expect at the level to which we saw Sunday.

I wrote about this in my notebook — which I greatly appreciate you taking the time to read, by the way! — but I will take heat-of-the-moment penalties like holding calls here and there over false starts, illegals shifts, delay of games, all day long. And Sunday? The Falcons didn't commit any of those, which is huge considering the red-zone penalties that have racked up for this team in the last month of the season. A combination of Penix's experience, knowledge of the play call and ability to effectively communicate it in the moment is a testament to his personal work but also his development with this coaching staff. There was an ease by which the Falcons clean operation on offense came, which with a rookie quarterback in his first start is hard to come by.

And let's be honest, too. The Falcons needed a mistake-free outing from their quarterback. They got really close to one in Penix's first full appearance.

John C. from X/Twitter

Can we get the red helmets all the time?!

Tori: I think Jessie Bates would like that, right? He has two pick-sixes in those red helmets!

I think I saw somewhere this week that the Falcons are 13-3 when wearing the red helmets since 2009. Now, I haven't fact checked that but it feels right just off the top of my head. But I digress...

I am very much in the red helmet camp. I'd argue they are one of the best throwback looks in all the league. But do I want them all the time? No. What makes something like the red helmets special is the novelty of them. If you wear them every week, you lose some of that. So, yes, I am here for the red helmets three or four times a year, but that's where I draw the line. Keep them special!