Are Falcons confident in Kirk Cousins after Michael Penix Jr. pick? | Pro Football Talk | NFL on NBC

PFT reacts to Falcons’ brass defending the Michael Penix Jr. pick at No. 8 overall, explaining why the decision is an “indictment” of what Atlanta believes it has in Kirk Cousins. #NBCSports #NFL #atlantafalcons
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Are Falcons confident in Kirk Cousins after Michael Penix Jr. pick? | Pro Football Talk | NFL on NBC
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let’s hear a little bit from Raheem
Morris on the Kirk Cousins reaction to
this stunning decision to make penics
the eighth overall pick in the
draft and Kirk does not have to look
over his shoulder every time he throws a
bad pass like that is not the case like
so I know I’m going have to tell you
guys once or twice that that is not the
case the only thing that you can show is
just you keep showing people that you
mean it and what you’re saying and
everything’s going to happen right
because there’s always going to be some
form of you know looking over your
shoulder and I’m going to try to
eliminate that as much as I
can yeah I mean good luck with that the
looking over the shoulder is implied
because of the fact that he’s there and
it’s one thing if the coach keeps saying
you’re fine you’re fine you’re fine it’s
everybody else that they’re completely
ignoring in this it’s the locker room
it’s the media it’s the fan base Kirk is
throwing bad passes but hey don’t look
over your shoulder but they’re booing
and they’re chanting we want penx and
the locker room is giving you the side
eye because they know that penx is
better than you that’s the problem it
doesn’t matter if the coach says all
that stuff it’s everybody else have you
ever seen have you ever seen a team have
to work so hard to justify a top 10 pick
I’m sure it’s happened and I’m not
remembering it but that’s not what you
want it to be it should be
celebration it shouldn’t be explanation
it shouldn’t be we have to keep coming
back to this every press conference to
address these questions to the point
where they’re going to get pissed off
sooner than later about having to answer
these questions but it’s just it’s it
really is ludicrous and they’re going to
try to create an environment where
cousins can go out and give it his best
shot and they’ll unleash penx whenever
but you know something I didn’t mention
from earlier this idea that penx would
sit for four or five years is one of and
I like this is the next thing to go to
go ahead yeah one of the dumbest things
I’ve ever heard 2 the negative was he’s
too old about being drafted now we’re
going to sit him for four years right
it’s all we heard about right well well
how how do you listen how do you sit him
for five years how do you how do you sit
him you pick up his fifth year option
and he doesn’t play once think about
that know we got a four-year contract we
got a fifth year option we’re going to
pick up the fifth year option on a guy
who’s never played and then after his
fifth year when he when he’s eligible
for free agency and we have to franchise
tag him to keep him off the market how
we going to sign a long-term deal when
he’s never played how how do you begin
to put a value on a guy who has been
sitting for five years and has never
played so that is just and I don’t think
Terry font know meant it this is just
get the heat out of the hot kitchen move
on to the next topic I don’t want to
talk about this anymore yeah if he sits
four or five years great I mean the
reality is he’s sitting and and I’d love
to figure out a good over under for this
as to how long Michael pennx is sitting
I think it’s as little as one year
definit I think more real realistically
it’s two and at the high end it’s three
yeah but I I kind of look at it as one
year I mean Michael penx is smart he’s
be ready to go he’s been playing in a
pro style offense right he’s Advanced
he’s mature he takes this seriously
right this is not this is one of the the
positives about Michael penck was that
it’s not going to be as much of an
adjustment period the negative was he’s
a little old right and there’s injuries
the positives are he’s a little old he’s
mature and he’s played a ton of football
so that makes no sense to your point and
you know you get back to the whole
conversation of like yeah it takes away
you know a leg out from Kirk Cousins and
his ability to lead the football team he
is going to look over his shoulder I
don’t care what you say if he start if
he starts off a game two for 12 and week
five and everybody’s booing and you know
maybe at that point they’re one and
three and everything’s going crazy like
I don’t I mean great coaches say stuff
like Raheem Morris said all the time
like oh no he doesn’t have to look over
his shoulder until the hits the fan
and then he’s got to look over his
shoulder because all of a sudden
everybody’s booing and I feel it and the
media’s been on me all week and the
players like you said are looking at me
and oh no actually it is time to look
over your shoulder they’re going to give
him a warning and be like hey look over
your shoulder now you’re not playing
very good but the other part of this is
that
like what how did this happen like did
they get blown away by the personal
workout which is okay but I would what I
would want to say to that is like that
has to happen already that should have
you should have already known this you
knew you needed a quarterback right I’ve
had people push back against me and go
well maybe they saw him at the workout
and they didn’t realize you the pick
number eight you needed a quarterback
you should have known that already it’s
too late right now the assets you get
into let’s flip it around damn I would
have loved Michael Pennock and for 180
million they could have got Christian
Wilkins and Bryce huff and maybe
Danielle Hunter too on the football team
I like that team better than Michael
penck Kirk Cousins and I don’t know who
the hell’s on the defense so that’s
where it’s an stup stupid allotment of
assets and we know the good teams
balance the assets the best and this
doesn’t seem right and that’s where
we’re all like what the hell is going on
you mentioned the whole what if Kirk is
two for 12 and they’re one and three you
know he’s never had this he’s never had
a situation like this not like this he
was the guy who was the oh by the way
fourth round pick in 2012 when Snyder
forced RG3 on the shanahans and the
shanahans like cousins and after a
couple years they realized RG3 wasn’t it
cousins played by RG3’s for fourth year
yeah they put him in bubble wrap cuz his
fifth year option back at the time it’s
only guaranteed for injury he didn’t
play at all that Year cousins plays then
they got a franchise tag him they never
made him a fair offer but he never had
in Washington or in Minnesota a truly
competitive threat yeah young stud
behind him right and now he does on top
of everything else he’s dealing with
he’s got the Tor ailles he’s got a new
team he got the expectations built in
with getting $100 million fully
guaranteed and now he’s got a guy who
may come in and capture the hearts and
minds of the fan base that’s it that’s
it yeah that’s where and you know
somebody told me over the weekend and
again I like Terry font I like rahee
Morris me too and I have I have given
the Browns a hard time in the past
because they’ve
got what’s his name the chief strategy
officer the guy podesta was in baseball
podesta d pesta
P right thank
you well you know somebody told me over
the weekend the problem is they have no
strategists in the building in Atlanta
and I don’t think they thought this
through because I think that’s one of
the things you have to do you have to
have someone who can
say here’s a
flowchart here’s all the permutations
here’s all the things we’re going to
have to deal with here’s how we need to
consider our various choices and you’re
right they knew they needed a
quarterback you better do all your work
on all the quarterbacks before it’s time
to fly to Washington and see him throw
passes to a couple of guys that he used
to play with at Washington who show up
to catch him that day that’s right you
better have scouts at his games you
should have GM already been to one of
his games you but it’s a GM and you need
a quar you should have already been at
his game and seen him throw and already
come back and been like everybody it’s
December I just want to tell you I saw
Michael penck it’s insane he’s throwing
the ball everywhere oh my gosh oh my
gosh don’t tell anybody shut up we’re
going to pick him at eight like shut up
we’re going to lay in the weeds they
should have known yeah sorry Mike I
didn’t mean to cut you off you know I’m
just going it’s fine and and and look I
know once you decide you want the guy
there is a very high degree of
importance attached to being secret and
that gets back to just managing
relationships on one hand it is one big
machine and parts go out Parts go in
Parts go out Parts go in but still some
of those parts you better be a little
more concerned with the relationship
than others and when you have just lured
Kirk Cousins to make a major
professional life change under the guise
of we’re going to win we’re going to win
we’re going to win and
look who knows what they said to him
about what they plan to do with the
eighth overall pick but I know what they
didn’t say they didn’t tell him they
were going to take a quarterback now
maybe they thought he’d go to a press
conference and blurt it out out like he
blurted out the tampering evidence but
regardless you create an impression for
the guy to get him to come there and
this pick completely undercuts it now
they have cleanup on aisle five in
Atlanta to get cousins mind right on top
of all the other they got to deal
with to try to take their team where it
was to the top of the division as far as
it can go in the playoffs they got to
get Kirk cousin’s mind right and Chris
you got to get Michael penics his mind
right cuz he’s got to be thinking the
more he hears this Pete made the point
that Saturday’s press conference after
the entire draft ended 32 minutes half
of it was about penx yeah half of it was
about the guy that was picked two days
ago right like at some point penx is
going to be like why am I here and his
attitude’s going to be I want to play I
want to play if I’d have been drafted by
this team I’d be playing if I’d been
drafted by that team I’d be playing all
these other guys are going to play and
he’s going to be Jordan love think about
that we found out how good Jordan was
this year finally after he had to sit
and watch Joe burrow to a tonga BYO and
Justin Herbert and jayen Herz the last
three years before that but at least it
was Aaron roders that was playing that’s
right that’s right that’s the difference
this is mid-level Guy flashes of top 10
flashes of top five was on a trajectory
in Minnesota that created a conversion
in me let’s see how this book ends let’s
keep him in Minnesota and see how it
goes oh well now he’s going to take his
talents to Atlanta oh and they brought
his rep I mean I bet they were laugh
laughing their asses off in Minnesota
about oh I bet you they were I bet you
yeah I I bet you they were like he
wanted to hold us over you know the
barrel for every last dollar how’d that
work for him he got every last dollar
and now he’s got a you know every last
dollar pain in his butt every day at
practice dealing with a guy that like
you said Jordan love what Michael penck
is better than Jordan love coming out
and Michael penx is ready Michael penx
is a gifted put him in the shotgun and I
just don’t have any doubt he’s going to
tear people up he’s he’s just he’s a
natural that way and then here’s the
other thing that I think on top of this
Mike this is where I’d worry about the
Achilles or anything like that is like
with that type of injury I guarantee
Kirk Cousins when we get to training
camp is going to have to manage that
he’s going to have days where they’re
going to go take the practice off don’t
do both practices today or maybe you
take the day off completely and what’s
that going to lead to Mike it’s going to
lead to Michael penck Jr now taking reps
with the number ones and oh oh it’s the
oh it’s it’s week two of training camp
and it’s the second time he’s gotten to
work with the ones and oh
woa look at that bomb to Darnell Mooney
Jr look at that bomb right there to
Drake London whoa what a throw to bejan
Robinson damn the future looks good the
future looks good the future looks good
damn how long are we going to wait to
make the future look good do we want to
make it look good now I mean that’s what
they’re going to do they’re going to
cause everybody in the locker room like
we always talk about they’re all going
to be going in the locker room going
damn we gave 180 million to kurk cousins
and Michael Pennock is tearing it up
every day and it’s going to be a problem
and that’s why the you know part of this
whole thing everybody’s in shock
everybody is in shock about this pick hi
it’s Mike Florio thanks for watching PFT
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