The biggest surprise of the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft was when the Atlanta Falcons selected former Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. 8th overall. The same Atlanta Falcons team that gave former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins a four-year, $180 million contract in free agency.
A top-10 pick can change the trajectory of your franchise, but instead of addressing a pressing need, the Falcons used a variation of the “Packers Method,” where they would draft and stash a quarterback for potentially several years. The most shocking part of this selection is that it happened at #8. Couldn’t the Falcons have found a trade partner to move down a few spots? Well, maybe not.
According to James Palmer, the Seattle Seahawks, New Orleans Saints and Las Vegas Raiders all attempted to enter the top 10 against Penix. The Falcons apparently weren’t the only team to possess the Washington product.
Also note that two of these three pursuers have “solidified” holders. Geno Smith won Comeback Player of the Year in 2022 with the Seahawks, who also just traded for Sam Howell this offseason. As for the Saints, they signed Derek Carr to a four-year, $150 million contract that contained $100 million in guarantees last offseason.
The cousins stayed “shocked” and “disappointed” by Atlanta’s decision to take a quarterback, according to NFL Media. While the situations aren’t exactly the same considering it was a top-10 selection and Cousins isn’t a Falcons franchise legend, it does bring back memories of when the Packers selected Jordan Love with the No. 26 pick in 2020. NFL Draft with Aaron Rodgers still on the roster. What happened next ? Rodgers went to his pantry, poured about four fingers of tequila and proceeded to win back-to-back NFL MVPs. The Falcons would be fine with the same results from Cousins.
