ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News is hearing from Atlanta Falcons starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. for the first time since his ACL surgery.
Penix Jr. caught up with Channel 2 sports director Zach Klein about his rehab, when he expects to be on the field again and the Falcons offseason hires.
“How’s morale and what is a day in the life of Michael Penix Jr. looking like right now?" Klein asked.
“Just a lot of rehab, you know, trying to get back to 100%, so I can be out there on the field with my guys," said Penix Jr.
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The Falcons quarterback had season-ending surgery in November for the third ACL injury of his football career. He told Klein that it didn’t know exactly what happened when he first went down.
“I felt it two other times. But it didn’t feel the same. But it kind of hurt to put pressure on it when I tried to stand up and I knew it was something awful about it,” he said.
The recovery time for a partially torn ACL can take months. But Penix Jr. said he is focused on being Week 1 ready if the doctors allow it.
“At the end of the day, it’s my doctor’s call, but like I said, I’m gonna do everything in my power to make sure I make that call easy for him and make sure that he feels like I’m able to go out there and play confident," he said.
Whenever Penix Jr. returns, it will be with a new head coach in place. The Falcons hired Kevin Stefanski as the 20th head coach in franchise history.
Penix Jr. met briefly with his new coach at the team’s facility in Flowery Branch. Klein asked what’s the key to a great bond between the quarterback and his head coach.
“You got to spend that time with somebody to get know them. Obviously, like you say, Coach Stefanski, he’s very locked in, but he has personality to him as well and I can see that,” Penix Jr. said. “But I feel like he’s a great coach and I look forward to building a relationship with him.”
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Penix Jr. will also get to pick the brain of franchise legend Matt Ryan, who Atlanta hired as its new president of football. He plans to ask Ryan a lot of questions given his legacy and resume, but also acknowledges Ryan has his own job to do.
“Obviously, you know, he’s made a statement and he said that he’s not here to be my quarterback coach,” Penix Jr. said. “He has a ton of faith in Coach Stefanski, Tommy Rees and, you know, whatever quarterback coach we bring in."
As he competes his rehab, Penix Jr. recently partnered with Invisalign to focus for confidence in his smile and his overall health. The one thing that would bring an even bigger smile to his face? Leading the Falcons back to the playoffs for the first time since 2019.
“We’re going to break it. I know we will. We have the guys in the room,” he said with a smile.
Klein asked Penix Jr. where he got his big smile from: his mom or Invisalign.
“That’s a trick question, but I’ll give it to both.”
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