5 thoughts from Falcons’ win over 49ers: Penix sharp, tight ends shine
FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons earned a much-needed upset win over the 49ers on Sunday, taking a 29-20 victory inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium to snap a two-game losing skid and end the visitors’ unbeaten season.
Here are five final thoughts from the Falcons’ biggest win to date in coach Kevin Stefanski’s tenure.
Penix shows maturity in game-plan execution
From a volume and efficiency perspective, Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. delivered one of the best games of his NFL career. Penix went 25-for-34 passing for 213 yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers. It’s the second consecutive week he’s thrown for three scores without an interception.
In his 17th start, Penix completed his second-most passes on his seventh-most attempts. It’s the first time the Falcons have won a game when Penix completed more than 20 passes — they were previously 0-4 — and only the second time they’ve won in 10 games where he’s logged 30 or more attempts.
“I thought Mike was really good throughout the day,” Stefanski said postgame. “That’s a very, very good defense. I mean, they’re excellent and they don’t give up big plays. We took our shots when we had them, and when we didn’t, I thought Mike really saw it really well.”
Part of the reason for Penix’s efficiency and turnover-free day: He took what the 49ers defense gave him, which for the most part, wasn’t much downfield. Of his 35 passes, only five traveled beyond 10 yards. He went 1-for-5 passing on those attempts, though his lone completion was a 21-yard touchdown to receiver Drake London.
Given the 49ers’ pass rush, the Falcons knew they’d need to get the ball out of Penix’s hands quickly. Penix’s time-to-throw was only 2.50 seconds, tied for the second-fastest in the NFL in Week 7, according to Next Gen Stats. So, Penix found his underneath options and let his playmakers do the rest.
Penix’s ability to push the ball downfield has never been a question, which actually makes his performance Sunday — high efficiency, low explosiveness — particularly positive. The game plan he executed showed a significant step in his patience and maturity.
“We knew with this defense, they don’t really give up too many explosives,” Penix said. “They do a good job with that. So for us, I just had to be smart and find my checkdowns, find the guys that’s open and obviously deliver a good ball for them. So, that’s all it was about. Just making sure we didn’t make any mistakes. Just go out there and play our brand of football.”
Reasons to celebrate on ‘National Tight Ends Day’
There’s no specific date for “National Tight Ends Day,” but it usually isn’t difficult to pick out on the calendar by season’s end — find a game where Kyle Pitts scored a touchdown, maybe two, and there’s a reasonable chance it aligns with his self-proclaimed favorite holiday.
Pitts delivered again Sunday, catching five passes for 22 yards and a score. But he wasn’t alone.
The Falcons carry four tight ends on their roster: Pitts, Charlie Woerner, Austin Hooper and Nick Muse. All of them caught passes Sunday. Perhaps that doesn’t sound impressive. Consider this: Woerner had one catch all season coming in. Hooper had seven. Muse hadn’t caught a pass since the 2023 season, and that was the only reception he’d recorded in the first 22 games of his career.
Muse not only made a reception, he made two — including his first NFL touchdown on a play-action pass at the goal line.
“We have four tight ends that we really trust on this roster, and guys that do a bunch of different things for us,” Stefanski said. “It’ll be game to game in terms of what we lean into, but really well-designed play there down on the goal line. Muse did a great job getting open, and Mike delivered the ball.”
Woerner also recorded the first rush of his NFL career, a 3-yard gain on a quasi-quarterback sneak. Why not? It was his day — and he and his tight end teammates capitalized.
“It just shows our depth and the guys that we have in this locker room,” Penix said. “Those guys work extremely hard. You see a lot of those guys doing a lot of the dirty work, all the blocking and stuff like that. Nick Muse, I think that was his first NFL touchdown. Shout out to him.
“But it is big to be able to see those guys that are doing the dirty work get rewarded for it, with getting completions and stuff like that, and ‘Chuck’ getting a rushing attempt.”
Smith plays best game as a Falcon
Falcons defensive tackle Maason Smith recorded his first sack with the team, the fourth of his career and his first overall since Dec. 29, 2024, during his rookie season with the Jaguars. He added two tackles for loss and, according to Next Gen Stats, a team-high four quarterback pressures.
“That’s a man possessed, and that’s a big man, when he’s possessed, to try to slow down,” Stefanski said. “I just looked up a couple times, and he’s just winning, and he’s winning quickly, and harassing the offensive line, harassing the quarterback. Yeah, ‘Maas,’ he was moving.”
The Falcons acquired Smith in a trade with Jacksonville this spring, sending 2024 second-round defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro in exchange. Smith, who was taken 13 picks after Orhorhoro that year, has given the Falcons a solid return on investment.
“I am glad they got Maason in the trade,” linebacker Josh Woods said. “The player that he is and who he’s grown to be — in this defense, we really lean on Maason a lot. He’s a good player.”
Offensive line takes a sizable step
Falcons left guard Matthew Bergeron can’t remember the last time he played a game where he and his fellow offensive linemen collectively didn’t allow a quarterback hit, let alone a sack. That makes Sunday all the more memorable, as the Falcons accomplished both feats.
The 49ers pressured Penix on just six of his 35 drop-backs, a 17.1% clip that served as the second-lowest in Penix’s 17 career starts, according to Next Gen Stats. None of their six pressures came against offensive linemen, either. Running back Khalil Herbert allowed one, while the other five were unblocked.
“Everybody gets credit with a stat like that,” Stefanski said. “That’s protection and time to throw, all those things. It takes all 11 guys. It’s not just an offensive line stat. It’s guys getting open, it’s the quarterback making great decisions. And the offensive staff, I thought (offensive coordinator) Tommy (Rees) and the offensive staff put together a great plan today with going up against that type of defense.”
Bergeron, however, acknowledged it certainly sounds good for the Falcons’ blockers. And it’s a good memento after a substandard performance the week before, during which Penix took a season-high five sacks.
“Last week, we didn’t do a good enough job with protection,” Bergeron told the AJC. “That was our main focus this week, just dialing in on our technique and really focusing on protection.”
First home win for Stefanski-led Falcons
The Falcons were winless in their first three regular-season home games under Stefanski. They were booed in a Week 2 loss to the Panthers and had to run silent count in a Week 6 loss to the Bears.
On Sunday, with 49ers fans making their presence felt, the Falcons’ faithful rallied and delivered a strong showing, too.
“It’s always good to have the fans behind us,” Woods said. “I mean, it’s not something we can bank on or, like, we’re hoping for one way or the other. Our job has to get done regardless. But it was definitely a great showing. It was a lot of fun, especially when they played the ‘Swag Surf.’ It was a super dope game to be a part of.”
The victory Sunday served as Stefanski’s first at home as the Falcons’ coach.
“Incredible,” Stefanski said. “What an amazing atmosphere in there. Our fans are so supportive, so passionate about this. We appreciate them and can finally get that ‘W’ here. So, I thought they were outstanding.”