During the first two weeks of the 2026 NFL season, it was hard to tell what was different about the Atlanta Falcons’ offense. The hiring of head coach Kevin Stefanski brought in offensive coordinator Tommy Rees, but differences were hard to spot without their true QB1.
Under Cooper Rush and Jack Strand, the offense was pedestrian to non-existent because of the quarterback play, making it hard to evaluate what was shown. Running 42% of the offensive plays from under center, however, was already a huge change. But what would it look like with Michael Penix Jr.?
Last season, when Penix Jr. got his chance to start, he was under center for just 14 of 515 offensive snaps. That’s 2.7% of his time last season. Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson insisted on operating from a pistol or shotgun formation, saying it was best for Penix Jr.
There was major speculation about whether Penix Jr. could play under center, though there’s tape of him doing so at the University of Washington. It got so bad last season that ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith wondered if Penix Jr. could even bend his knees. For a quarterback with two surgically repaired ACLs at the time, that’s a damaging accusation.
Penix Jr. has stated multiple times that he has no issue playing behind center, and he just ran the offense he was given.
Week 3 in Green Bay gave us a small sample size of what’s different about this year’s offense.
The obvious standout is how much time Penix Jr. is now spending behind center.
Even early in the season, Rees had his quarterbacks under center 42% of the time. That trend continued with Michael Penix Jr. on Thursday night
Helping end a negative narrative around Penix Jr.’s ability to play quarterback at a high level or learn different offense styles with favorable results
His first game under Rees produced 498 total yards of offense –500 if not for two victory formations–, with the help of star position players, Bijan Robinson and Drake London, a passing touchdown, no sacks, and only a 20% pressure rate when he dropped back.
If the Rees- Penix Jr. duo can recreate these performances in a wide-open NFC South race, the Falcons may solve two problems at once: solidify a franchise quarterback and finally end their playoff drought.
