With the game out of reach, the Falcons brought in Michael Penix Jr to relieve Kirk Cousins.
Down 38-6 in the fourth quarter, the Atlanta Falcons figuratively waved a white flag against the Denver Broncos. While rookie Bo Nix shredded the Falcons, when Atlanta got the ball back with 9:03 left, they sent Kirk Cousins to the bench and brought rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr into the game.
The 24-year-old appeared for 13 snaps across two drives. Penix completed two of his four passes for 24 yards. He was sacked once. On Atlanta's final drive, the Falcons opted to run the ball five straight times to run out the clock.
The Falcons dropped to 6-5 and hold a 2.5-game lead in the NFC South over the 4-6 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Atlanta holds the No. 4 seed in the NFC and has a 74% chance of advancing to the postseason. Denver improved to 6-5 and holds the No. 7 seed in the AFC playoffs.
Falcons aren't benching Kirk Cousins
While it may make for good headlines, Cousins isn't going anywhere. The Falcons are still right in the middle of a playoff run. Handing over the reins to an unproven rookie quarterback would require a couple more dud performances by Cousins for the coaching staff even to consider it.
The Falcons' defense has been the larger concern. They've allowed 274 points this year, the fourth-most in the NFL, and their defensive DVOA ranks eighth-worst.
It doesn't help matters that Atlanta is dealing with many injuries on defense. Head coach Raheem Morris ruled out DL Ta'Quon Graham, OLB James Smith-Williams, LB Troy Andersen, LB JD Bertrand, CB Mike Hughes, CB Dee Alford, and CB Antonio Hamilton Sr. before the game.
The momentum shifted against Atlanta in the third quarter when a missed fourth-and-3 by Denver was overturned. Bo Nix hit Lil'Jordan Humphrey for a short gain, but the ball came out, and the pass was ruled incomplete. After review, the call was overturned, resulting in a first down for the Broncos. A few plays later, Nix hit Troy Franklin for a seven-yard touchdown, extending their lead to 28-6.
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Without that touchdown, the Falcons could have had the ball back with decent field position only minutes into the start of the third quarter. A score there for the Falcons closes the gap and makes the deficit more manageable. But it wasn't meant to be.
With just 50 yards rushing, the Falcons' inability to lean on Bijan Robinson because of a poor game script puts Atlanta on its heels early. The Broncos outgained the Falcons 400 to 226 despite only having a negligible edge in time of possession at 30:05 to 29:55.
