The Atlanta Falcons have spent nearly the entire offseason waiting for Michael Penix Jr. to take the final step in his recovery from ACL surgery. That wait could finally be nearing an end.
Penix has remained limited to individual and 7-on-7 work throughout training camp while Tua Tagovailoa has handled the starting offense in 11-on-11 periods. But after Thursday’s joint practice with the Indianapolis Colts, Penix revealed he has another important medical checkpoint coming later in the day.
“I’m supposed to be talking to him today,” Penix said, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Daniel Flick. “We gonna see.”
Michael Penix Jr. Hoping for Clearance From Doctor
Penix isn’t hiding what he wants to hear.
Falcons team reporter Will McFadden reported after Thursday’s practice that Penix has a meeting scheduled with his doctor and is hoping to receive clearance. Penix also made clear he won’t push back if the answer isn’t the one he wants.
“I would never argue with a doctor,” Penix said.
Penix previously offered a rough timeline when training camp opened July 29. After being denied clearance for 11-on-11 work, he said he was told it could be “another four weeks, probably” before advancing to the next stage, while leaving open the possibility it could happen earlier.
Four weeks from July 29 would be Aug. 26, as ESPN’s Marc Raimondi noted Thursday. That puts Penix’s latest appointment just six days before the timeline he initially gave.
Penix underwent surgery in November after suffering a partially torn ACL in his left knee against the Carolina Panthers. It was the third ACL surgery of his football career. He was cleared to throw in March and participated in individual and 7-on-7 drills during OTAs and minicamp, but the Falcons have continued to keep him out of full-team periods.
Michael Penix Jr. Clearance Could Change Falcons QB Battle
A clearance would carry more weight than simply getting Penix back into 11-on-11 drills.
Atlanta entered the offseason planning a quarterback competition between Penix and Tagovailoa, but Penix’s limitations have prevented the Falcons from evaluating the two quarterbacks on equal footing. Quarterbacks coach Alex Van Pelt acknowledged in June that there couldn’t truly be a competition until Penix was healthy enough to participate fully.
Tagovailoa has therefore received the overwhelming majority of the work with the starting offense during team periods.
That continued Thursday against Indianapolis, where Flick reported Tagovailoa and the first-team offense looked “significantly, significantly better” after a rough opening joint practice Wednesday.
Penix had an uneven day in his limited 7-on-7 work. He opened a red-zone period with a touchdown to Bijan Robinson on a wheel route down the left sideline, but later threw an interception to Colts linebacker Jaylon Carlies while attempting to fit the ball into a tight window.
Those reps are useful, but they aren’t the same as operating an offense with a live pass rush and 11 defenders on the field.
That’s what makes Penix’s conversation with his doctor potentially the most important development of his summer. The Falcons have waited months to see Penix fully participate.
He may finally find out Thursday whether that wait is over.
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