Falcons’ Michael Penix Jr. ready to take the reins at quarterback

Over his three starts, Penix completed 61 of 105 passes (58.1%) for 775 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions. He finished with a passer rating of 78.9.

The Falcons picked up 35 first downs passing under Penix.

“I saw a lot of poise,” said Williams, who played quarterback at Grambling State (2011-14), like his father. “I look at the intangibles. He was in some tight games. I think that was really good for him because he didn’t really play in the (exhibition games).”

The Falcons beat the Giants in Penix’s starting debut. The Falcons pushed the Commanders to overtime on the strength of a fourth-quarter touchdown drive that Penix led. On fourth-and-goal from the 13-yard line, Penix threw a dart to tight end Kyle Pitts with 1:19 left.

After the defense got a stop, he drove the offense for a 56-yard field-goal attempt by Riley Patterson that could have won the game. Patterson missed, and the Commanders marched down for a TD to end the game in overtime.

“It was really good for him to be in those situations,” Williams said. “You saw his demeanor come to life. He was never too high. He was never too low. I really liked that about him, and that is something that we can build on.”

Williams is fine with Kirk Cousins, last season’s opening-game starter, still being on the roster.

“They had great chemistry last year,” Williams said. “Kirk is a great teammate. Mike is a great teammate. I don’t see anything changing from that dynamic. Kirk was really good with Mike when he started playing. Kirk was the one who gave him a lot (of) intel and insight on things as he came to the sideline.”

The Falcons drove the ball down the field more with Penix. He had 10.1 intended air yards per attempt, while Cousins had 7.5. Penix also had a pass batted down, two throwaways and seven dropped passes.

Penix had a bad-throw percentage of 22.3%, with 23 bad throws. He was on target with 69 passes (67%). The opposition blitzed him 32 times. He ran two run-pass option plays that picked up six yards and 15 play-action plays that picked up 119 yards.

“Everybody sees the talent,” Williams said. “He has the big arm. That’s the thing that jumps out on tape. That’s one of the things that you did see at Washington (in college), that he was able to touch all areas of the field with accuracy and pace. I think that will continue here.”

Williams believes that Penix is unflappable.

“You can’t get him rattled, you know what I mean,” Williams said. “That’s because he believes in what he’s doing. He knows who he is, and he has unbelievable belief and confidence in who he is. I love that about him.”

Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson plans to call a different game with Penix at the controls.

“We are just expecting that next level of ownership from him,” Robinson said. “The guys on the team love him. You guys see the style of play he plays with, it matches with our skill guys, and the skill guys love playing football with him. (We’re) just looking for those guys to all come together.”

Robinson has high expectations, too.

“Looking for nothing but positive things from Mike,” Robinson said. “We know the talent. We know the things he can do on the field. This is your team. Let’s roll with this thing.”

Penix is looking forward to working with Robinson.

“(The) offensive coordinator (and) quarterback have to be on the same page,” Penix said. “ZRob and (I) have definitely been on the same page. Just picking each other’s brain on stuff we like. Stuff we don’t like. Things we see on the field. It’s been good, and it’s been growing.”

Penix plans to keep honing his skills and mental preparation for the season.

“It takes time,” Penix said. “It doesn’t come overnight. It takes time. It takes a lot of playtime. You’ve got to be in the game to learn a lot of things. Film study and off-the-field stuff, all of that stuff takes time. It grows, and you get out of it what you put into it.”

Penix, who discussed things with former Falcons great Matt Ryan this offseason, is ready to help the franchise stop its streak of seven consecutive losing seasons.

“I just got my feet wet,” Penix said. “It made me excited. I’m just ready for this year.”

In addition to Penix and Cousins, the Falcons have quarterbacks Easton Stick and Emory Jones on the roster.