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Where does Michael Penix Jr. rank among Falcons QBs after 4 starts?
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- Where does Michael Penix Jr. rank among Falcons QBs after 4 starts?
Since the Atlanta Falcons parted ways with Matt Ryan after the 2021 season, they have employed five different starting quarterbacks. In each of the last three seasons, the team's Week 1 starter did not play the entire season and was benched due to poor performance.
Michael Penix Jr . took over for the final three games of the 2024 season after Kirk Cousins was benched. The former top-10 pick made his fourth career start last weekend against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . So how has Penix performed since taking over?
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In his four games as the starter, Penix has thrown for 1,035 yards, four touchdowns and three interceptions. He has a completion percentage rate of 59.9 percent. For comparison, Cousins passed for 864 yards, with four touchdowns, four interceptions and a 64.7 completion rate over his first four starts in Atlanta.
In between Cousins and Matt Ryan, the Falcons went with Marcus Mariota , Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke . Mariota threw for 779 yards and accounted for three passing touchdowns and four interceptions in his first four starts. Ridder, who took over for Mariota for the final four games of the 2022 season before being the season starter in 2023, went for 708 yards and two touchdowns during that four game stretch to end the season.
Taylor Heinicke started four total games during the 2023 after Ridder was benched. During those games, Heinicke totaled 715 yards through the air with four touchdowns and four interceptions.
Compared to the last three starting quarterbacks, the Falcons appear to be in much better hands with Penix, but where does he rank among the best signal-callers in franchise history?
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Falcons passing ranks through first 4 NFL starts
| Rank |
Player |
Yards |
TD / INT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
1,035 |
4 / 3 |
|
| 2 |
891 |
4 / 3 |
|
| 3 |
Kirk Cousins |
864 |
4 / 4 |
| 4 |
Marcus Mariota |
779 |
3 / 4 |
| 5 |
Chris Miller |
766 |
4 / 10 |
| 6 |
Taylor Heinicke |
715 |
4 / 4 |
| 7 |
Chris Chandler |
709 |
5 / 4 |
| 8 |
708 |
2 / 0 |
|
| 9 |
Matt Ryan |
669 |
2 / 2 |
| 10 |
Steve Bartkowski |
400 |
3 / 3 |
Back in 2008, Matt Ryan went for just 669 yards with two touchdowns, two interceptions and a 52.4 percent completion rate in his first four starts. Former Falcons quarterback Michael Vick threw for 891 yards and four touchdowns with just three interceptions during his first four starts in the NFL.
Chris Chandler (1997-2001) threw for 709 yards with five touchdowns to just four interceptions. This far, Chandler has thrown the most touchdowns during his first four starts in Atlanta but also threw more interceptions and over 300 fewer passing yards than Penix.
Before Chandler, there was Chris Miller and Steve Bartkowski. Miller quarterbacked the Falcons from 1987 to 1993, and during his first four starts, he threw for 766 yards with four touchdowns and a lofty 10 interceptions. He threw four interceptions twice during two of his three starts in 1987.
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Bartkowski played for the Falcons from the 1975 season through 1985. During his first four starts, Bartkowski threw for just 400 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions. Obviously, in those times, throwing the football was not as prioritized as it was closer to the modern game.
In total, we see that through each players first four starts at quarterback, Penix has had the better production. Obviously, while the first four starts are meaningful, they don't full represent what their career totality could be.
Matt Ryan wasn't very productive when he first came into the league, but he quickly grew into his role and ended up being the best player in team history. Hopefully Penix has a similar career trajectory, but that's something we will have to wait and see.
Penix will make his fifth career start this Sunday night against the Minnesota Vikings . Check out the team's updated depth chart and injury report ahead of Week 2.
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This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Michael Penix is Falcons' most productive QB after first 4 starts
