Michael Penix Jr. had a few good plays and some regrettable misses in his NFL preseason debut

In his NFL debut Miami Dolphins Friday night, Atlanta Falcons Quarterback Michael Pennis Jr. wasn’t actually auditioning for this moment. This was an audition for the future rather than the present.

Pennis, the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft after the Washington Falcons signed Kirk Cousins ​​to a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million guaranteed, wasn’t competing for a starting spot or a spot on the roster. Head coach Raheem Morris and his staff wanted to gauge the development of the University of Washington product. Pennis is in the Aaron Rodgers/Jordan Love plan to sit out some time, possibly a few years, before getting a chance to make it in the NFL.

Overall, Penix was pleased with his performance in Atlanta’s 20-13 loss, but there was at least one pass he’d like to take back: He completed 9 of 16 passes for 104 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions and still had some energy left.

“I thought we did a decent job,” Penix said after entering the NFL. “Obviously … there are some areas I want to get better at. I thought our offense played the best we could and we definitely had one mistake. It’s not something the naked eye or the fans will notice, but you can see it with our offense.”

Penix was referring to a checkdown where he looked the wrong way. It could have been this 9-yard pass to running back Jace McClellan with 14:41 left in the second quarter. Penix had his eye on receiver Chris Blair on a 15-yard cut route over the middle of the field, but he might have been better off looking to receiver Casey Washington on another 15-yard cut route to the right boundary.

Morris said after the game that the play he wished he could have done over for his young quarterback was an easy route to rookie receiver Casey Washington with 7:39 left in the first quarter.

“I got a really good feeling out of Michael,” Morris concluded. “I was hoping he’d get that pass back that he threw down the sideline, but he’s really been able to make strides. He’s obviously a first-round draft quarterback, so it’s easy to just focus on the pass, but it was fun to watch him make some pass plays, get some work done, lead the offense and do some good work in and out of the huddle. It was a pretty good night for him and I’m very happy with how he performed.”

Penix struggled more than anyone would have liked on outside passes, especially on several pass attempts to Washington, who was Penix’s favorite early on. The sixth-round pick out of Illinois caught three of nine passes for 27 yards, but many more were thrown just beyond his reach.

Washington caught my attention earlier this year as a fast, ball-winning player, but I was surprised by his longevity in the draft.

“You always want to give a good evaluation to the guys you draft,” Morris said of the relationship. “When you get the opportunity to make a first-round draft pick, [pick] “Having Michael there gives us a chance to evaluate Casey a little bit, so we want to give him a chance and get the ball out there like that.”

One good example of Penix’s progress (as Morris pointed out) was a 16-yard pass to Washington, where the Falcons placed a frontside inside cut under Sean McVay’s staple mirrored intermediate cut route. This isn’t a surprise, since Atlanta’s new offensive coordinator, Zach Robinson, was a McVay assistant. Los Angeles Rams From 2019 to 2023.

Penix first read a frontside outside cut to tight end Ross Dwelley, gave it up, used a pump fake to freeze linebacker Ezekiel Vandenberg and then hit Washington with a backside dig. Penix’s progression work hasn’t always been great, but he’s shown an understanding of more than just the simple things. It’s a great quarter-beater, and in the NFL, where Cover 4 is more important than ever, having a quarterback who can execute it is a plus.

Penix speaks highly of everything Washington has to offer, but his on-field production didn’t go as planned in his first game.

“He’s a really hard worker,” Pennis said of Washington after the game. “He’s a guy that wants to come in and work every day. We’ve built that trust. We’ve built that trust throughout the offseason and continued to work on his off days. He works extremely hard. You just had to see the smile on his face the first time he stepped on the field. He was happy. I’ve never seen a smile like that. He was excited to get on the field. Any time the ball was coming to him, he made a play. For me, we’ve just got to find a way to get the ball to him.”

Hopefully, the Penix-Washington duo will pay off in more visible form this Saturday when the Falcons play their second preseason game. Baltimore RavensOverall, the Falcons should be encouraged by two things: Michael Pennis’ ability to handle an NFL offense with his unprecedented wild vertical passing, and the addition of Casey Washington to a roster already filled with offensive weapons with all sorts of untapped potential.