ATLANTA — The Atlanta Falcons are still in contention within the faltering NFC South, primarily due to another underwhelming performance from quarterback Kirk Cousins, which has led them to make a change at the position. The team opted to bench Cousins in favor of rookie Michael Penix Jr. after a lackluster win against the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday night, which saw the Falcons scrape by with a score of 15-9, bringing their record to 7-7 and placing them just one game behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the division.
The Falcons have the edge over the Buccaneers on tiebreakers, which head coach Raheem Morris noted, declaring, “That’s where you want to be.” Cousins had a disappointing night, throwing for just 112 yards, along with one touchdown and an interception. Following the game, he reflected on his struggles, stating, “It’s not where I want to be.” Morris confirmed that Penix would be starting at home against the New York Giants on Sunday, emphasizing, “This was a football decision and we are fully focused on preparing the team for Sunday’s game.”
Before facing the Raiders, Cousins struggled through an ongoing slump, having gone without a touchdown pass and racking up eight interceptions in the prior four games. He eventually threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to Drake London in the first quarter, but failed to gain momentum, ultimately adding a 16th interception to his season tally, leading the league in this unfortunate statistic.
The Raiders, now with a dismal 2-12 record, sit at the bottom of the rankings alongside the Giants, who are looking to break a nine-game losing streak. Following their matchup against New York, the Falcons will take on the Washington Commanders (9-5) before wrapping up the season at home facing the Carolina Panthers (3-11). Last week, Morris expressed intentionally cautious sentiments regarding Penix, who has only played in two games and was not active during the clash with Las Vegas. He reiterated that sticking with Cousins until now was not due to a lack of confidence in Penix, explaining, “He is a rookie, and we do have a plan on how we want to utilize him when the time is right.”
Cousins, 36, signed a lucrative four-year, $180 million contract earlier this offseason, prior to Penix being drafted eighth overall by the Falcons. According to Morris, the team has consistently viewed Penix as their future starting quarterback, and with Cousins’ struggles, that future is now.
In terms of positives, Bijan Robinson delivered an outstanding performance, recording a career-high 125 rushing yards, enabling the Falcons to outgain the Raiders 168 yards to 65 on the ground. Once they took the lead following Cousins’ touchdown pass, Atlanta relied heavily on their running game. Robinson had 22 carries, while teammate Tyler Allgeier contributed 12 for 43 yards. The team averaged an impressive 4.5 yards per carry throughout the game. Robinson has now surpassed 1,000 rushing yards this season, making it his first season to reach this milestone, having eclipsed the 100-yard mark in three of the last five contests and achieving 20 or more carries in four out of five games following just one such effort in the initial nine weeks.
However, the Falcons struggled with their passing game, which allowed the Raiders to stack the box and exert pressure on Cousins during evident passing situations. The limitations in their aerial attack took play-action options off the table. Wide receivers had a muted impact, with Darnell Mooney failing to make a catch on his sole target, while London only brought in three completions on three targets. Ray-Ray McCloud managed one catch on three targets as well.
On the defensive front, linebacker Kaden Elliss stepped up with a career-high 124 tackles following his leading performance with 11 stops against the Raiders. This marks the fourth straight game and eighth time overall in the season that he has led the Falcons in tackles. Elliss also recorded his fourth sack of the season, contributing to the Falcons’ ongoing resurgence in pass-rushing, as they achieved four sacks against the Raiders, including two from outside linebacker DeAngelo Malone, marking his first two sacks of the year. Atlanta has notched at least four sacks for three consecutive games now.
Unfortunately for Cousins, some of his struggles appear to stem from hesitance on his throws, possibly a sign that his interception woes have adversely impacted his confidence. Despite Morris continually voicing support for Cousins, the offensive play-calling hints at a different narrative, with few passing opportunities being afforded to him. He completed just 11 of 17 passes as the Falcons defaulted to their ground game.
On the injury front, after placing linebacker Troy Andersen on injured reserve due to a left knee issue before the game, the Falcons saw LB Nate Landman exit momentarily with a neck injury, though he returned in the third quarter. Turning to special teams, punter Bradley Pinion played a significant role in the field-position battle, successfully pinning the Raiders with four punts inside their 10-yard line, two of which were within the 5-yard line.
Looking ahead, facing the struggling Giants may provide an ideal opportunity for Penix to make his mark as the Falcons prepare for the final stretch of the season.