FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. will have season-ending surgery to repair the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.
The Falcons announced Penix's surgery plans on Wednesday, two days after saying the 25-year-old would be placed on injured reserve and miss at least four games while awaiting a second opinion on the severity of the injury. The team said the second opinion confirmed that Penix has a partially torn ligament in the knee.
The loss of Penix leaves veteran Kirk Cousins as the starter for the remainder of the season as the Falcons (3-7) prepare to play at New Orleans on Sunday.
Penix suffered the injury in last week's 30-27 overtime loss to Carolina, extending the Falcons’ losing streak to five games.
Coach Raheem Morris said Wednesday that Easton Stick would be signed to the active roster from the practice squad to serve as Cousins' backup. Former Tampa Bay backup Kyle Trask will be signed to the practice squad.
Morris acknowledged that he could not say Penix would be recovered in time for the start of the 2026 season. He also said Penix's season-ending surgery would impact the team's offseason plan “100%” at quarterback.
“To answer that in the shortest possible way, yes,” Morris said.
If there is uncertainty about Penix's recovery schedule, the team is likely to look for help in free agency or the draft.
Penix had two ACL surgeries on his right knee during his college career. His last ACL surgery came in 2020 at Indiana. He transferred to Washington in 2021.
“It gives me great ease because of Michael, first of all knowing he’s been through it,” Morris said.
The Falcons also are expected to be without top wide receiver Drake London on Sunday. Morris said Wednesday that London, who also has a knee injury, won't play against the Saints and his status was “week to week.”
Penix missed the Falcons’ 34-10 loss to Miami on Oct. 26 with a bone bruise on his left knee. He suffered the more significant injury on Sunday when he was hit by Panthers safety Tre’von Moehrig after throwing an incomplete pass.
Penix, the team’s 2024 first-round pick, was 13 of 16 for 175 yards against Carolina after completing only 12 of 28 passes in a 31-25 overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Berlin on Nov. 9.
The Falcons’ offense struggled in Cousins’ first start of the season in the loss to Miami. Morris noted there was uncertainty at quarterback in practice leading up to the game against the Dolphins, but this week Cousins will have the advantage of taking all the first-team snaps.
“We've got to find a way to get a win because he’s capable of doing it and he’s done it in the past,” Morris said, noting the Falcons started the 2024 season 6-3 with Cousins as the starter.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Returning to the VIBE Center, the Foster City Senior Showcase is a great place to discover r… Read moreFoster City Senior Showcase
WHAT A holiday market showcasing Bay Area small businesses and featuring unique, handcrafted… Read more2025 Holiday Night Market by Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center at the Chan Zuckerberg Community Space
Aragon High School Theatre proudly presents Footloose, the Musical! Footloose is an energeti… Read moreAragon High School Theatre presents "Footloose"!
The San Mateo Union High School (SMUHSD) Sustainabilty Committee presents a community event:… Read moreWater is Life
The San Mateo County Blue Star Moms, a local military moms support group is holding a karaok… Read moreHelp Support our Troops
robertwhitehair said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.