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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nfc-playoff-picture-after-falcons-win-buccaneers-stumble-in-week-16');   ga('set', 'title', 'NFC playoff picture after Falcons win, Buccaneers stumble in Week 16');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/NFC-playoff-picture-after-Falcons-win-Buccaneers-stumble-in-Week-16.jpg"></figure><h1>NFC playoff picture after Falcons win, Buccaneers stumble in Week 16</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-23T19:44:44-08:00">December 23rd, 7:44pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-24T08:46:24-08:00">December 24th, 8:46am</time><address><a>Shane Shoemaker</a>Shane Shoemaker is an Associate Editor and Editorial writer for ClutchPoints, covering a wide range of sports and entertainment topics. Shane is a lifelong Tennessean yet refuses allegiance to any Tennessee-based teams. He's a graduate from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga with a BA in Communications/Journalism. There's a good chance he'll never let you forget the Atlanta Braves won the 2021 World Series.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>With two weeks remaining in the regular season, the NFC playoff picture is beginning to take shape, but much remains unsettled. Only two teams, the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles, have clinched playoff spots, leaving the other five seeds up for grabs. It’s shaping up to be a thrilling race that could come down to the final week.</p><p>The Lions and Eagles have dominated their respective divisions for most of the season, but both will need to fend off surging rivals to secure their positions. Meanwhile, the NFC West and NFC South continue to shift dramatically. The Los Angeles Rams managed to hold onto their lead in the NFC West this week, but in the NFC South, the Atlanta Falcons reclaimed the division lead from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who had taken it just a few weeks ago.</p><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Buccaneers-quarterback-Baker-Mayfield.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Falcons got some unexpected help in their quest for the division crown. The Dallas Cowboys, eliminated from playoff contention just before their Sunday Night Football game, decided to play spoilers. They delivered an upset victory over the Buccaneers, knocking Tampa Bay out of the playoff picture—for now.</p><p>With the NFC playoff race narrowing and the regular season winding down, here’s a closer look at how the standings are shaping up as the final weeks approach.</p><h2><b>1. Detroit Lions (13-2, 1st in NFC North)</b></h2><p>As beat up as the Lions are, they didn’t let the division rival Chicago Bears overtake them in Week 16. In fact, they made history, earning <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/lions-news-detroit-makes-history-dominant-win-bears">their first 13-win season in franchise history</a>. Detroit remains unbeaten against NFC North foes this season. However, a regular season finale against the Vikings awaits in a couple weeks.</p><h2><b>2. Philadelphia Eagles (12-3, 1st in NFC East)</b></h2><p>The Eagles 10 game winning streak came to an end in Week 16. Philadelphia was outscored 22-12 in the second half, with all of those points from Washington coming in the fourth quarter. It didn’t help matters that the Eagles lost Jalen Hurts to concussion protocol and were forced to sub in Kenny Pickett.</p><h2><b>3. Los Angeles Rams (8-6, 1st in NFC West)</b></h2><p>The Rams have scored under 20 points in their last two games, yet they’ve also allowed just 15 combined points during that span are 2-0 and are on a four game winning streak overall. In Week 16, they went into New York to take down the Jets, while increasing their division lead in the process.</p><h2><b>4. Atlanta Falcons (8-7, 1st in NFC South)</b></h2><p>Everything seemed to go right for the Falcons in Week 16, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-michael-penix-jr-instant-reaction-successful-first-start">including rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr.’s promising debut</a>. Atlanta cruised to a 34-7 victory over the Giants and benefited from the Cowboys upsetting the Buccaneers. With the win and Tampa Bay’s loss, the Falcons regained the NFC South lead, <a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/standings/_/view/playoff" rel="noopener">holding the tiebreaker</a> due to their head-to-head advantage, according to ESPN.</p><h2><b>5. Minnesota Vikings (13-2, 2nd in NFC North)</b></h2><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/vikings-news-sam-darnold-makes-history-heroic-performance-seahawks">Sam Darnold continued to shine</a> and strengthen his MVP candidacy after leading the Vikings to a hard-fought victory in a hostile environment in Week 16. Minnesota edged out the Seahawks 27-24, with Darnold delivering a clutch go-ahead touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson. The Vikings are proving to be a major contender in the NFC playoff picture.</p><h2><b>6. Green Bay Packers (11-4, 3rd in NFC North)</b></h2><p>The Packers hold onto the No. 6 seed, with a convincing win over the Saints on Monday Night Football. With the win they clinched a spot in the NFC playoffs.</p><h2><b>7. Washington Commanders (10-5, 2nd in NFC East)</b></h2><p>The Commanders made a strong statement with a crucial <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/commanders-news-commanders-jayden-daniels-mindset-comeback-vs-eagles-should-fire-up-fans">comeback win over the Eagles</a> to keep their division hopes alive. Despite throwing two interceptions, Jayden Daniels lit up the scoreboard with five touchdown passes, leading Washington to a thrilling 36-33 victory over Philadelphia. The Commanders remain steady in the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoff picture, but their hopes of claiming the division crown are still alive.</p><h2><b>8. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-7, 2nd in NFC South)</b></h2><p>After reclaiming the NFC South a couple of weeks ago due to the Falcons’ struggles, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/buccaneers-most-blame-week-16-loss-cowboys">Buccaneers handed it right back to Atlanta</a>. Baker Mayfield did everything he could to keep Tampa Bay’s playoff hopes alive and push the Falcons out of the NFC picture. However, costly turnovers caused by the Cowboys’ defense proved to be the difference. Now, the Buccaneers must hope for some misfortune to befall Atlanta in the coming weeks to regain their spot.</p><h2><b>9. Seattle Seahawks (8-7, 2nd in NFC West)</b></h2><p>A Geno Smith touchdown pass to AJ Barner with just over four minutes remaining seemed poised to seal a victory for the Seahawks. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough, as the Vikings responded with a score on the ensuing drive. Seattle’s hopes were further dashed when they missed a field goal and threw an interception on their final drives. The Seahawks now find themselves needing some good fortune to secure one of the top seven seeds in the NFC playoff picture.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NFC playoff picture after Falcons win, Buccaneers stumble in Week 16

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/why-falcons-win-over-giants-doesnt-prove-michael-penix-jr-can-lead-team-on-deep-playoff-run');   ga('set', 'title', 'Why Falcons win over Giants doesn’t prove Michael Penix Jr. can lead team on deep playoff run');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Why-Falcons-win-over-Giants-doesnt-prove-Michael-Penix-Jr.-can-lead-team-on-deep-playoff-run.jpg"></figure><h1>Why Falcons win over Giants doesn’t prove Michael Penix Jr. can lead team on deep playoff run</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-23T16:13:05-08:00">December 23rd, 4:13pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-23T16:13:05-08:00">December 23rd, 4:13pm</time><address><a>Shane Shoemaker</a>Shane Shoemaker is an Associate Editor and Editorial writer for ClutchPoints, covering a wide range of sports and entertainment topics. Shane is a lifelong Tennessean yet refuses allegiance to any Tennessee-based teams. He's a graduate from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga with a BA in Communications/Journalism. There's a good chance he'll never let you forget the Atlanta Braves won the 2021 World Series.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons turned heads during the NFL Draft in April with one of the most surprising selections in recent memory. It wasn’t necessarily the player, quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who raised eyebrows—he was considered a first-round talent by many—but rather the context surrounding the No. 8 overall pick.</p><p>Penix was projected to be drafted anywhere from the top 10 to the late first round, with some concerns about his injury history and mechanical issues that scouts often scrutinize. Yet, those questions took a backseat when Atlanta made the call. The narrative shifted instantly.</p><p>The question wasn’t about Penix’s ability but about the decision itself: Why would the Falcons draft a quarterback at No. 8? The team had glaring needs elsewhere—most notably on the pass rush, a need that still persists—and had just signed Kirk Cousins to a lucrative four-year, $180 million contract. So, why Penix?</p><p>Fourteen games into the season, that question answered itself.</p><p>Cousins, once lauded for leading the team in fourth-quarter comebacks, devolved into a turnover machine. During Atlanta’s four-game losing streak prior to Week 16, Cousins failed to throw a single touchdown while tossing eight interceptions. It became painfully clear that the Falcons needed a change, and there sat Penix, waiting in the wings with a figurative “Break in case of emergency” sign on him.</p><p>Head coach <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/why-falcons-raheem-morris-didnt-want-to-bench-kirk-cousins-michael-penix-jr">Raheem Morris finally broke the glass</a>, calling on Penix to start against the New York Giants in Week 16.</p><h2><b>Michael Penix Jr. was solid in debut against Giants</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Penix-Jr-vs-New-York.jpg"><figcaption>Brett Davis-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Everything seemed perfectly set up for <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-michael-penix-jr-instant-reaction-successful-first-start">Michael Penix Jr. to make his NFL debut in Week 16</a>. The Falcons were back at home in Mercedes-Benz Stadium, sporting their throwback uniforms, and their opponent was the struggling New York Giants, a team with just two wins on the season.</p><p>Penix faced a Giants defense ranked near the bottom of the league in takeaways and points allowed per game. While nothing is guaranteed in the NFL, this appeared to be an ideal matchup for the rookie and Atlanta to reset and build momentum during the final stretch of the season with their playoff hopes still alive.</p><p>The rookie quarterback delivered, leading Atlanta to a convincing 34-7 victory over New York. Penix completed 18 of 27 passes for 202 yards and an interception—a pick that was more the result of Kyle Pitts failing to secure a catch than a poor throw by Penix. Unfortunately, that interception also wiped out what would have been Penix’s first NFL touchdown.</p><p>With Penix at the helm, the Falcons generated 10 of their 22 first downs through the air, converted 8 of 14 third downs, and went 2-for-4 in the red zone.</p><p>“He went out and played almost flawless football and kept the game really clean and kept everything clean for us in order for us to get a win,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said of Penix, <a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/43115812/michael-penix-jr-lifts-atlanta-falcons-starting-debut" rel="noopener">per</a> <i>ESPN</i>.</p><p>It’s hard to argue with <a href="http://v">Morris’ assessment of Penix’s debut</a>. There have been far worse starts for rookie quarterbacks in NFL history. Still, context matters. Penix’s strong showing came against a weak opponent in favorable circumstances. How he performs in subsequent games, especially under tougher conditions, will be the true measure of his potential and if he can lead this team in the playoffs.</p><h2><b>The real test for Michael Penix Jr., Falcons begins now</b></h2><p>The advantages of homefield and facing a weaker opponent benefited Michael Penix Jr. in his debut, but his second act will be a much greater challenge. The Falcons are headed to Washington, D.C., in Week 17 to face the playoff-contending Commanders in a game with significant postseason implications. The NFL even flexed the matchup to Sunday Night Football, highlighting its importance.</p><p>This time, it’s not a veteran-versus-rookie duel but a head-to-head battle between two of the top eight picks in last year’s draft: Penix and fellow rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. Daniels holds a clear experience advantage, having 13 starts under his belt compared to Penix’s single appearance. Adding to the drama, Washington’s head coach, Dan Quinn, is the same coach who last guided Atlanta to the playoffs.</p><p>If Penix and the Falcons manage to pull off the upset and remain in the NFC playoff picture, their next challenge will be a divisional matchup against the Carolina Panthers. While the Panthers have only three wins this season, they’ve shown significant improvement in recent weeks.</p><p>These next two games will be pivotal in determining Atlanta’s playoff fate. While Penix’s performance against the Giants was encouraging, it doesn’t carry much weight considering the circumstances. The real test begins now.</p><h2><b>The Falcons had everything go their way in Week 16</b></h2><p>In the grand scheme of things, while Michael Penix Jr.’s performance was solid and encouraging, everything seemed to align perfectly for him and the Falcons on Sunday. Defensively, Atlanta had one of its best showings of the season, forcing three turnovers from the Giants, including two pick-sixes. The defense also added three sacks, marking the fourth consecutive game with at least three.</p><p>On offense, the Falcons leaned heavily on their ground game, accumulating 127 rushing yards and two touchdowns. This allowed Penix to avoid the pressure of needing to make big plays downfield. Bijan Robinson carried much of the load, rushing 22 times for 92 yards and two scores.</p><p>Additionally, the Giants were dealing with quarterback instability, starting Drew Lock in what was his third appearance of the season. Lock struggled, throwing a season-high two interceptions.</p><p>Adding to Atlanta’s good fortune, the Dallas Cowboys helped the Falcons playoff hopes by defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a rare home win for Dallas. The Buccaneers, who had been leading the NFC South, were upset on Sunday Night Football by the Cowboys. With the Falcons having swept the Bucs earlier in the season, they reclaimed the division lead for now.</p><p>Does that ultimately mean the Falcons will make the playoffs? That can only be answered by Penix  and his performances moving forward.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Why Falcons win over Giants doesn’t prove Michael Penix Jr. can lead team on deep playoff run

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-drake-london-hamstring-injury-not-believed-serious');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons’ Drake London hamstring injury not believed to be serious');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Drake-London-hamstring-injury-not-believed-to-be-serious.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons’ Drake London hamstring injury not believed to be serious</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-23T06:48:24-08:00">December 23rd, 6:48am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-23T06:48:24-08:00">December 23rd, 6:48am</time><address><a>Malik Brown</a>Malik Brown is a multimedia reporter based in Atlanta who covers the Hawks and Dream for ClutchPoints. Malik has worked in entertainment and sports, and he specializes in the NBA and NFL.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons got an important win against the New York Giants in Week 16, but one of their key offensive players went down. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-fan-love-raheem-morris-drake-london-injury-update">Drake London didn’t finish the game</a> after suffering a hamstring injury, and with a big matchup coming up in Week 17 against the Washington Commanders, the hope is that he can play. Luckily for the team, after the game, head coach Raheem Morris noted that he believed London <a href="https://x.com/tori_mcelhaney/status/1870943738283102679" rel="noopener">could have gone back in</a> the game following his hamstring injury.</p><p>The Falcons were already up big when London came out of the game, and they were able to keep the lead with him sidelined. London finished the game with five receptions for 59 yards, as he had a new quarterback throwing to him this week. Michael <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-benches-kirk-cousins-favor-of-michael-penix-jr">Penix Jr. stepped in as the starting quarterback</a> and played a great game to get the Falcons the win.</p><p>They’ll now have to go to Washington on Sunday Night Football in Week 16 and hope to keep their division lead against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.</p><h2>Falcons looking to wrap up the division</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Drake-London.jpg"><figcaption>Brett Davis-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>With the Falcons winning and the Buccaneers losing to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 16, Atlanta is now back in the driver’s seat of the NFC South and can claim the title if they win their last two games. Their next matchup will be against the Commanders, who got a big win against the Philadelphia Eagles at home, and then they face the Carolina Panthers in the final week of the season.</p><p>If the Falcons lose any one of their last two games and the Buccaneers win out, then they’ll be back in second place in the division and won’t have a chance of making the playoffs. The hope is that the Falcons can handle their business and make the postseason, something they haven’t done since 2017.</p><p>Michael Penix Jr. looks to be the starter for the remainder of the season and for the future. Kirk Cousins’ play in the last four games did not give the Falcons organization any hope that he could lead the team anymore, and now the question is what will they do with him during the offseason. They could cut him and take on a big cap hit, or they could trade him, which will only work if he waives his no-trade clause.</p><p>As of now, the Falcons are focused on the development of Penix and if he can lead them to the playoffs this season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons’ Drake London hamstring injury not believed to be serious

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-fan-love-raheem-morris-drake-london-injury-update');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons fan will love Raheem Morris’ Drake London injury update');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Falcons-news-Atlanta-fans-will-love-Raheem-Morris-Drake-London-injury-update.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons fan will love Raheem Morris’ Drake London injury update</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-22T17:32:40-08:00">December 22nd, 5:32pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-22T17:32:40-08:00">December 22nd, 5:32pm</time><address><a>Rexwell Villas</a>Rexwell Villas is an experienced sports writer covering a variety of sports, including the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, and college football. He's a Communications Arts graduate from the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines, and he claims to have JR Smith's conscience with his shot selection. He has won a basketball, a baseball, and a football championship in fantasy all within a year.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/giants-vs-falcons-predictions-pick-odds-spread-for-nfl-week-16-2024">Atlanta Falcons scored a big win on Sunday</a>, as they took down the New York Giants in <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-michael-penix-jr-instant-reaction-successful-first-start">Michael Penix Jr.’s debut as a starter in the NFL</a>. However, it was not all good news for Atlanta in its 34-7 victory at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, as the Falcons saw their top downfield weapon leave the game with a lower-body injury in the fourth quarter.</p><p>Wide receiver Drake London apparently sustained a hamstring injury against the Giants, forcing him to exit the contest prematurely.</p><p>The good news for the Falcons and their fans is that it doesn’t seem London’s injury is serious.</p><p>After the game, Atlanta head coach Raheem Morris said that London <a href="https://x.com/tori_mcelhaney/status/1870943738283102679" rel="noopener">could have returned to the contest</a>, according to Falcons senior reporter Tori McElhaney.</p><p><i>“Rahem Morris said he does believe that Drake London could have gone back into the game following the hamstring injury.”</i></p><h2><b>Falcons WR Drake London unable to finish Week 16 game vs. Giants</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Atlanta-Falcons-wide-receiver-Drake-London-5-runs-after-a-catch.jpg"><figcaption>Brett Davis-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The blowout nature of the game likely made it an easier decision for the Falcons to keep London off the field than risk further aggravation of his injury. The Falcons were leading by 24 points at the time of London’s exit.</p><p>Before London left the Giants game, he had already compiled a total of 59 receiving yards on five receptions and eight targets. Darnell Mooney ended up leading the Falcons against New York with 82 receiving yards on five catches and six targets.</p><p>The win over the Giants improved Atlanta’s record to 8-7, as the Falcons continue to breathe down the neck of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who are leading the NFC South division with an 8-6 record.<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/tampa-bay-buccaneers-bold-predictions-for-week-16-snf-vs-cowboys"> A loss by the Buccaneers to the Dallas Cowboys this Sunday night</a> will have both the Bucs and the Falcons sharing identical records, with just two more weeks left in the 2024 NFL regular season.</p><p>In any case, London’s injury status is worth monitoring in the coming days, as the Falcons prepare for a Week 17 showdown against the Washington Commanders on the road at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland. In the event that London can’t give it a go versus the Commanders, the likes of Mooney, Ray-Ray McCloud, KhaDarel Hodge and Chris Blair can be expected to see an increased workload in Atlanta’s passing attack that entered Week 16 ranked 16th in the NFL with an average of 218.4 yards per game.</p><p>The 23-year-old London, who was taken eighth overall in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft by Atlanta, has 978 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 83 receptions, thus far in the 2024 campaign.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons fan will love Raheem Morris’ Drake London injury update

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-raheem-morris-drops-truth-bombs-michael-penix-jr-s-first-start');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons coach Raheem Morris drops truth bombs on Michael Penix Jr.’s first start');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Falcons-news-Raheem-Morris-drops-truth-bombs-on-Michael-Penix-Jr.s-first-start.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons coach Raheem Morris drops truth bombs on Michael Penix Jr.’s first start</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-22T14:58:30-08:00">December 22nd, 2:58pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-22T14:58:30-08:00">December 22nd, 2:58pm</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University senior from Atlanta on track to graduate with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>On Sunday afternoon, the Atlanta Falcons picked up their eighth win of the season with a 34-7 home demolition of the New York Giants. This game marked the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-michael-penix-jr-instant-reaction-successful-first-start">first career start for quarterback Michael Penix Jr.</a>, whom the Falcons selected eighth overall in this past NFL Draft and was recently moved up the depth chart <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nfl-rumors-falcons-keeping-kirk-cousins-michael-penix-jr-s-backup-not-off-table">over the struggling Kirk Cousins.</a></p><p>Penix Jr. played well on Sunday vs the Giants, completing 18 out of his 27 pass attempts for 202 yards. The one interception he threw was largely a product of a drop from tight end Kyle Pitts.</p><p>After the game, head coach Raheem Morris spoke on <a href="https://x.com/tori_mcelhaney/status/1870940859505705175" rel="noopener">what he saw</a> out of Penix Jr. on the afternoon.</p><p>“The plan came a little bit sooner, but the kid was ready.” Morris said, per Tori McElhaney on X, describing Penix Jr.’s play as “near flawless football.”</p><p>Morris also broke down why the Falcons were so thankful that Penix Jr. was ready to step up to the challenge.</p><p>“I would say it’s gratifying to us as an organization,” said Morris, per Terrin Waack.</p><h2><b>A good start for Michael Penix Jr.</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Penix-Jr-vs-New-York.jpg"><figcaption>Brett Davis-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>It’s not often that a rookie quarterback is asked to make his first career start for a team that’s in the middle of a tight playoff race and facing a must-win situation every time they step on the field.</p><p>However, that was exactly the scenario Michael Penix Jr. found himself in when Raheem Morris inserted him into the starting lineup this week over Kirk Cousins, who had struggled mightily since early November.</p><p>It should be noted that if a quarterback were to find themselves in that situation, there probably isn’t a more favorable opponent to be playing against than the Giants, who were already on a nine-game losing streak and lost some more key pieces on the defensive end of the ball during the game on Sunday.</p><p>Still, you can only play who’s in front of you, and Penix Jr. showed excellent decision making skills as well as the downfield accuracy that allowed him to be a top ten pick this past April, despite working against some brutal drops from Atlanta’s wide receivers.</p><p>In any case, the Falcons will next take the field on Sunday evening for a road game against the Washington Commanders. That game is slated to get underway at 8:20 PM ET from Landover.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons coach Raheem Morris drops truth bombs on Michael Penix Jr.’s first start

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-michael-penix-jr-instant-reaction-successful-first-start');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons rookie Michael Penix Jr.’s instant reaction to successful first start');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Falcons-news-Michael-Penix-Jr.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons rookie Michael Penix Jr.’s instant reaction to successful first start</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-22T14:05:11-08:00">December 22nd, 2:05pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-22T14:05:11-08:00">December 22nd, 2:05pm</time><address><a>Dan Fappiano</a>Dan Fappiano is a Connecticut based sports journalist and a graduate of both Tunxis Community College and Central Connecticut State University. Dan has spent time covering high school and professional sports in both the print and online medium. He hopes to see his beloved Chicago Bears win a Super Bowl someday.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>It took until Week 16 for the Atlanta <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-michael-penix-jr-reaction-starting-quaterback">Falcons to finally feel comfortable starting rookie quarterback Michael Penix</a>. Their patience paid off, as Penix led the Falcons to a 34-7 victory over the New York Giants in his debut.</p><p>The rookie completed 18-of-27 passes for 202 scoreless yards and an interception. While his numbers aren’t the prettiest on paper, Penix is <a href="https://x.com/tori_mcelhaney/status/1870944960377454806" rel="noopener">more than content to earn a victory</a> in his first starting opportunity, via team reporter Tori McElhaney.</p><p>“I’ve been preparing each and every day for this,” Penix said. “It was such a blessing. A great game. A great team game.”</p><p>While the Giants opened up the scoring with a two-yard touchdown run. It was all Falcons from there. Of their 34 unanswered points were two Drew Lock pick-sixes. Add in a pair of Bijan Robinson touchdown runs and Riley Patterson field goals and the Falcons came away with a rout.</p><p>Still, the quarterback knows he has room to improve from his debut. He isn’t hiding from it and says he has <a href="https://x.com/tori_mcelhaney/status/1870946280014488061" rel="noopener">a lot more he can offer</a>.</p><p>“It takes a lot of reps. We did a lot of reps this past week and have a lot more to put together,” Penis said. “What you saw today is only going to get better.”</p><p>The decision to bench Kirk Cousins for Michael Penix didn’t come without controversy. Adding Penix to the team after signing Cousins brought on a wave of flack as is. But the Falcons stood by it. Atlanta knows it may take some time for Penix to get truly acclimated. Still, they believe he is the right quarterback to lead their playoff push. Penix <a href="https://x.com/tori_mcelhaney/status/1870945101024776360" rel="noopener">stands by their decision</a>.</p><p>“I was ready for the moment,” Penix said.</p><p>After earning a victory in his debut, Penix will have another opportunity to prove himself in Week 17 against the Washington Commanders.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons rookie Michael Penix Jr.’s instant reaction to successful first start

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nfl-rumors-falcons-keeping-kirk-cousins-michael-penix-jr-s-backup-not-off-table');   ga('set', 'title', 'NFL rumors: Falcons keeping Kirk Cousins as Michael Penix Jr.’s backup ‘not off table’');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/NFL-rumors-Falcons-keeping-Kirk-Cousins-as-Michael-Penix-Jr.s-backup-not-off-table.jpg"></figure><h1>NFL rumors: Falcons keeping Kirk Cousins as Michael Penix Jr.’s backup ‘not off table’</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-22T08:46:07-08:00">December 22nd, 8:46am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-22T08:46:07-08:00">December 22nd, 8:46am</time><address><a>Ben Strauss</a>Ben Strauss is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. He is a die-hard NFL fan who cheers for the Detroit Lions. He has previously written fantasy football content for IDPGuys and ImportantNonsense.com.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons are in a tight race during the final weeks of the regular season. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nfl-power-rankings-week-16-bills-win-shootout-seahawks-struggle">Atlanta is 7-7 heading into Week 16</a> and is in a tight race with Tampa Bay for the NFC South division title. The Falcons have to keep winning during the final three weeks of the regular season to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nfc-playoff-picture-after-rams-take-control-of-nfc-west-in-week-15">have a chance at a playoff berth in the NFC</a>.</p><p>The Falcons will have to win those games with rookie QB Michael Penix Jr. as their new starter. Atlanta announced earlier this week that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-benches-kirk-cousins-favor-of-michael-penix-jr">Kirk Cousins in benched in favor of the rookie</a>.</p><p>But what will the Falcons deal with this situation after the 2024 season? Atlanta has a number of different options for dealing with the Kirk Cousins situation this offseason. NFL insider Ian Rapoport <a href="https://www.nfl.com/news/weighing-atlanta-s-options-as-falcons-transition-from-kirk-cousins-to-michael-penix-jr-as-starting-qb" rel="noopener">laid out a number of possibilities</a> in a recent article on NFL.com.</p><p>One option Rapoport mentioned was the Falcons keeping Cousins as the backup for Michael Penix Jr.</p><p>“Cousins has been a model teammate in the building, especially this week. He’s sat in the same seat in team meetings and has remained a leader. He has helped mentor Penix and this week upon a demotion, ran the scout team. That could pave the way to them keeping him as a backup — since they have already paid him, anyway,” Rapoport argued.</p><p>This theory does conflict with reporting from Adam Schefter this week that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nfl-rumors-falcons-will-release-kirk-cousins">suggests the Falcons will cut Kirk Cousins before March 17th</a>. This would save the Falcons from paying Cousins a $10 million bonus.</p><h2><b>Would Kirk Cousins becoming a backup QB work for him and the Falcons in 2025?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Kirk-Cousins_f84c62.jpg"><figcaption>Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>On the surface, this is obviously the easiest option for the Falcons to move forward with. This is largely because it requires them to make no changes this offseason.</p><p>However, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-kirk-cousins-remaining-backup-2025-gets-stern-appraisal">not everyone is convinced that this plan would actually work out</a>.</p><p>ESPN’s Marc Raimondi believes that Cousins will be a supportive mentor for the remainder of the 2024 season. He does not think that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nfl-rumors-falcons-will-release-kirk-cousins" rel="noopener">grace would carry over into next season</a>.</p><p>“For the remaining three weeks of the season, Cousins said he’ll offer his support to Penix and the team. After that, things are very much up in the air, and the chances the 13-year veteran returns to the Falcons as a backup seem slim,” Raimondi said Friday.</p><p>Cousins has not been known to be a dramatic quarterback earlier in this career. That said, he’s never found himself in this situation before.</p><p>It will be interesting to see how the Falcons approach the upcoming offseason. Whichever decision they make about Kirk Cousins will likely be the first domino to fall.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NFL rumors: Falcons keeping Kirk Cousins as Michael Penix Jr.’s backup ‘not off table’

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-atlanta-change-offense-michael-penix-jr-benching-kirk-cousins');   ga('set', 'title', 'How Falcons will change offense for Michael Penix Jr. after benching Kirk Cousins');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/0How-Atlanta-will-change-offense-for-Michael-Penix-Jr.-after-benching-Kirk-Cousins-0.jpg"></figure><h1>How Falcons will change offense for Michael Penix Jr. after benching Kirk Cousins</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-22T08:26:20-08:00">December 22nd, 8:26am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-22T08:26:20-08:00">December 22nd, 8:26am</time><address><a href="https://medium.com/bingeable">Sonny Giuliano</a>Sonny Giuliano is an experienced sports writer for ClutchPoints who has been covering the NFL, NCAA Football, NBA, and NCAA Basketball for well over a decade. Originally from the small town of Elba, New York, Sonny received his degree from Florida Gulf Coast University and currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After just 14 subpar games, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-benches-kirk-cousins-favor-of-michael-penix-jr">the Falcons made the decision to bench Kirk Cousins</a> in favor of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/meet-michael-penix-jr-the-falcons-no-8-pick-in-2024-nfl-draft">8th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Michael Penix Jr.</a>, a 2023 Heisman Trophy finalist and presumptive future face of the franchise in Atlanta. The move comes at an interesting point in the season, as the 7-7 Falcons are very much in the mix for a postseason berth, yet they’re willingly turning the car keys over to a rookie who has just five regular season pass attempts to his name.</p><p>Now in fairness, you could say that Kirk Cousins forced Atlanta’s hand with a disastrous five week stretch in which he threw just one touchdown to nine interceptions as the Falcons went from 6-3 to 7-7 as fast as you could say, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-kirk-cousins-atlanta-edition-you-like-that-celebration-not-as-iconic">“You Like That?”</a> Even still, making the change to Penix does not come without risk, as Atlanta will need to tailor their offense to the big-armed lefty in a short period of time ahead of Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.</p><p>But that doesn’t mean that Falcons head coach Raheem Morris and his staff in Atlanta isn’t up to the challenge, in large part because they’ve been <a href="https://www.nfl.com/news/weighing-atlanta-s-options-as-falcons-transition-from-kirk-cousins-to-michael-penix-jr-as-starting-qb" rel="noopener">preparing Penix for this moment</a> all year long, and they believe, “mentally, he is ready.”</p><p>According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, since the preseason, Penix has been practicing with the same listening device in his helmet as Kirk Cousins, allowing the rookie to, “get his mental reps that way, run the scout team, but then go back and watch the film of what Cousins has done and go through it himself.”</p><p>Additionally, there will be changes on Sunday in how Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson calls the game with Michael Penix Jr. in at quarterback as opposed to Cousins, who hasn’t displayed the arm strength this season he once showed in Minnesota prior to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/vikings-news-kirk-cousins-carted-locker-room-packers-ankle-achilles-injury">a season-ending achilles tear in the 2023 season</a>.</p><p>“While they’ll likely focus on core plays he likes and knows well, expect an attempt at more deep throws and big plays. There will also likely be more play-action,” Rapoport writes. “Atlanta loved Penix’s arm talent in the pre-draft process, and viewed him overall as a prospect near Jayden Daniels’ level. They expect big things, and from those who have observed practice, players can feel the optimism, too.”</p><p>This could end up being the move that saves Atlanta’s season, but even if it is, it will raise the question as to why it took Raheem Morris and co. so long to pull the trigger on benching Cousins for Penix.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

How Falcons will change offense for Michael Penix Jr. after benching Kirk Cousins

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/giants-news-drew-lock-love-injury-update-week-16-falcons');   ga('set', 'title', 'Drew Lock will love this injury update for Week 16 vs. Falcons');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Giants-news-Drew-Lock-will-love-this-injury-update-for-Week-16-vs.-Colts.jpg"></figure><h1>Drew Lock will love this injury update for Week 16 vs. Falcons</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-21T22:56:36-08:00">December 21st, 10:56pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-21T23:12:20-08:00">December 21st, 11:12pm</time><address><a>Mike Gianakos</a>Mike Gianakos is the former editor-in-chief of High Times magazine, where he also spearheaded the video department and event production. He is a longtime podcaster and even longer suffering NY Jets fan.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Giants are <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/giants-news-new-york-makes-another-qb-change-latest-drew-lock-move">handing the offense back to Drew Lock</a> for Week 16’s matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. After missing the previous week with a heel injury, Lock will be under center for a spiraling Giants team. Fortunately, Lock will <a href="https://x.com/AdamSchefter/status/1870685199261970738" rel="noopener">have some help</a> on Sunday.</p><p>Rookie running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. is expected to play against the Falcons, according to NFL insider Adam Schefter on X. Tracy was limited in practice this week after sustaining an ankle injury against the Baltimore Ravens. Although he’s listed as questionable for Sunday’s game, the Giants expect him to suit up.</p><p>Tracy has been one of the sole bright spots in an otherwise miserable season for New York. The fifth round draft pick has acquitted himself well in his first year as a pro. In 14 games, Tracy has rushed for 695 yards and five touchdowns with 30 receptions for another 220 yards.</p><p>While the Giants seem to have their running back of the future, the team has a massive hole at quarterback. After <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/giants-release-daniel-jones-after-turning-to-tommy-devito">releasing longtime starter Daniel Jones</a>, New York turned to Tommy DeVito. But the second-year passer has only been able to make two starts due to injuries.</p><h2><b>RB Tyrone Tracy Jr.’s solid rookie campaign was wasted on the Giants</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Tyrone-Tracy.jpg"><figcaption>Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/giants-tommy-devito-in-line-to-start-vs-ravens-after-latest-drew-lock-injury-update">DeVito drew the start</a> last week against the Ravens but he was forced from the game with a concussion. This led to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/giants-news-tommy-devitos-injury-reminds-us-tim-boyle-somehow-still-in-nfl">Tim Boyle playing an entire half</a> for the Giants. Now, Lock, who was unable to play in Week 15, will get the start against Atlanta and DeVito will back him up.</p><p>Three New York quarterbacks have combined to throw 150 pass attempts since Jones was benched following a Week 10 loss to the Carolina Panthers in Germany. They’ve totaled one touchdown and three interceptions. And Boyle has the only non-Daniel Jones touchdown pass for the team in 2024.</p><p>The Giants were actually 2-3 after Week 5 this season. Since then, however, the offense has collapsed into itself and disappeared. New York has lost nine straight games to fall to an NFL-worst 2-12 record. During that streak, the team has averaged just 13 points per game.</p><p>While <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/giants-brian-daboll-reacts-to-fans-plane-banner-asking-to-fire-everybody">fans hope the Giants replace the entire coaching staff</a>, the team will certainly look for a new starting quarterback during the offseason. And, because they’ve earned a high pick thanks to their ineptitude, New York could turn to the draft to find the next signal caller.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/giants-news-deion-sanders-drops-shedeur-sanders-nfl-draft-take">Deion Sanders would take Shedeur Sanders</a> with the first overall pick. But if the Las Vegas Raiders out-miserable the Giants over the last three games of the regular season, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/giants-news-cam-ward-makes-case-why-new-york-take-him-2025-nfl-draft">New York could select Cam Ward</a>, who’s had an impressive season with the Miami Hurricanes.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Drew Lock will love this injury update for Week 16 vs. Falcons

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nfl-rumors-falcons-will-release-kirk-cousins');   ga('set', 'title', 'NFL rumors: Falcons will release Kirk Cousins');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/NFL-rumors-Falcons-will-release-Kirk-Cousins.jpg"></figure><h1>NFL rumors: Falcons will release Kirk Cousins</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-21T07:33:22-08:00">December 21st, 7:33am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-21T07:33:22-08:00">December 21st, 7:33am</time><address><a>Preston Byers</a>Preston Byers is an experienced writer and journalist who currently serves as an associate editor for ClutchPoints and as a staff writer at The Vindicator and Tribune Chronicle, where he covers sports in the Mahoning Valley. Previously, Preston worked as an associate editor for Dot Esports and a site expert for FanSided's Union and Blue.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Less than a year after <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/grading-kirk-cousins-4-year-180-million-contract-with-falcons">signing Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract,</a> the Atlanta Falcons are reportedly planning to release Cousins.</p><p>ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported today that Atlanta <a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/43081294/sources-falcons-expected-cut-kirk-cousins-10m-bonus-due" rel="noopener">is expected to</a> release Cousins before March 17, when he is due a $10 million bonus.</p><p>“Kirk Cousins’ divorce from the Falcons is expected to be finalized before his $10 million roster bonus is due March 17, with executives across the NFL fully expecting Atlanta to release him by then,” Schefter wrote.</p><p>“The split between Cousins and the Falcons is inevitable at this point, according to multiple sources.”</p><p>Schefter also said Cousins is not expected to help out the Falcons, who signed him to a deal with $90 million guaranteed and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-kirk-cousins-contract-very-tradable-per-nfl-insider">a no-trade clause just nine months ago</a>. One month after his signing, Cousins was blindsided by Atlanta drafting Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with the eighth overall pick.</p><p>Cousins and the Falcons began the 2024 season well enough; the veteran quarterback threw for 2,328 yards and 17 touchdowns as Atlanta jumped out to a 6-3 start, good enough for first place in the NFC South. However, over the last month or so, Cousins has struggled mightily, and as a result, the Falcons have sunk in the standings.</p><p>Once the frontrunner to win the division, Atlanta lost four straight, a streak during which Cousins threw zero touchdowns and 8 interceptions. Additionally, the Falcons averaged 14.3 points per game during that four-game skid.</p><p>Despite the team’s troubles over the past five weeks, the Falcons are still only one game behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a team the Falcons beat both times this year, in the NFC North. But Cousins will likely not get another chance to lead Atlanta to the playoffs, as Falcons head coach <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-benches-kirk-cousins-favor-of-michael-penix-jr">Raheem Morris named Penix the team’s new starting quarterback</a>.</p><p>When he is released, a logical landing spot for Cousins would seem to be the Cleveland Browns, whose head coach, Kevin Stefanski, worked with Cousins when the former was the Minnesota Vikings’ quarterbacks coach and then offensive coordinator before leaving for Cleveland. Browns starting quarterback Deshaun Watson went down with a season-ending Achilles injury earlier this year, and the Browns have struggled at the position with and without Watson.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NFL rumors: Falcons will release Kirk Cousins

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-drake-london-blunt-reaction-michael-penix-kirk-cousins-change');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons star Drake London’s blunt reaction to Michael Penix-Kirk Cousins change');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Falcons-news-Drake-Londons-blunt-reaction-to-Michael-Penix-Kirk-Cousins-change.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons star Drake London’s blunt reaction to Michael Penix-Kirk Cousins change</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-20T13:04:49-08:00">December 20th, 1:04pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-20T14:15:25-08:00">December 20th, 2:15pm</time><address><a>Dan Fappiano</a>Dan Fappiano is a Connecticut based sports journalist and a graduate of both Tunxis Community College and Central Connecticut State University. Dan has spent time covering high school and professional sports in both the print and online medium. He hopes to see his beloved Chicago Bears win a Super Bowl someday.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>When the Atlanta Falcons take on the New York Giants in Week 16, rookie <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-benches-kirk-cousins-favor-of-michael-penix-jr">Michael Penix will be replacing Kirk Cousins under center</a>. But for star wide receiver Drake London, he won’t even notice the difference.</p><p>It certainly won’t be the same catching passes from Penix compared to Cousins. But as long as London is getting the ball, <a href="https://x.com/Bryce_Lewis86/status/1870109670087503978" rel="noopener">he’ll be happy</a>, via Bryce Lewis of Sporting News.</p><p>“I don’t take QB changes in any way,” London said. “How I look at it is, ‘Just catch the ball.’ Whoever throws me the ball, I don’t really care, just as long as it gets there and it’s catchable.”</p><p>London has looked quite impressive with Cousins at quarterback. Through 14 games, he has caught 78 passes for 919 yards and seven touchdowns. All three stats are already career-highs. London also ranks tied for 11th in receiving touchdowns and 15th in yardage. His only hope is that the change to Penix doesn’t deflate his gaudy receiving numbers.</p><p>While London played well with Cousins, Atlanta was forced into the move based on the quarterback’s play. He threw four interceptions against the Los Angeles Chargers before another two against the Minnesota Vikings. Against the Los Angeles Raiders, Cousins had just one pick and even threw a touchdown. But his lethargic 112 yards passing ultimately sent him to the bench.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-anonymous-gm-calls-atlanta-children-drafting-michael-penix-jr">Falcons got plenty of flack for drafting Michael Penix</a> when they had already signed Kirk Cousins. But now they’ll have an opportunity to see exactly what they have in the rookie. His final season at Washington saw him throw for 4,903 yards and 36 touchdowns. He won the Maxwell Award for his efforts.</p><p>At 7-7, Atlanta is still pushing for a playoff spot in battling with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the NFC South’s top spot. Raheem Morris and company believe Penix gives the Falcons the best chance to succeed. If things are flowing offensively, London agrees.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Falcons star Drake London’s blunt reaction to Michael Penix-Kirk Cousins change

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/falcons-news-kirk-cousins-remaining-backup-2025-gets-stern-appraisal');   ga('set', 'title', 'Falcons’ Kirk Cousins remaining backup with Atlanta in 2025 gets stern appraisal');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/0Kirk-Cousins-remaining-backup-with-Atlanta-in-2025-gets-stern-appraisal0.jpg"></figure><h1>Falcons’ Kirk Cousins remaining backup with Atlanta in 2025 gets stern appraisal</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-12-20T11:30:49-08:00">December 20th, 11:30am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-12-20T11:33:52-08:00">December 20th, 11:33am</time><address><a>Derek Hryn</a>Derek Hryn is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints specializing in NFL and NCAA Football coverage. Derek was previously a fantasy football expert at DK and SB Nation, and he has been featured at FanSided, USA Today, NBC Sports, The New York Post, and others.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Falcons</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Atlanta Falcons’ recent decision at starting quarterback has sparked some serious debate about the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-kirk-cousins-message-michael-penix-jr-after-benching">franchise’s plans for Kirk Cousins moving forward</a>. After 14 appearances under center, head coach Raheem Morris announced that the Falcons are benching Cousins <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/falcons-news-michael-penix-jr-found-out-hed-replace-kirk-cousins-at-costco">for rookie first-round pick Michael Penix Jr</a>.</p><p>Cousins has struggled through the second half of the season, throwing just one touchdown and nine interceptions in the last five games. A change was long overdue, as the Falcons sit at 7-7, and one loss away from missing the NFC playoffs. Playing on a freshly-inked $180 million contract over four years, both sides may have to continue an alternate future.</p><p>Penix is set to make his first NFL start after just a few regular season appearances. He entered in the Falcons’ Week 11 blowout loss to the Denver Broncos, where he flashed potential. The Washington product completed two of his four passes for 24 yards.</p><p>His Week 16 showing against the lowly New York Giants defense will be watched with massive interest. One thing’s for certain, the Falcons are going to bear <a href="https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/43066728/nfl-atlanta-falcons-qb-kirk-cousins-salary-cap-michael-penix-jr" rel="noopener">a much different outlook</a> after Sunday.</p><p>“For the remaining three weeks of the season, Cousins said he’ll offer his support to Penix and the team. After that, things are very much up in the air, and the chances the 13-year veteran returns to the Falcons as a backup seem slim,” according to ESPN’s Mike Raimondi.</p><p>Cousins’ no-trade clause offers a chance for him to have slice of control in his future, and he can discuss his preferred destinations to the Falcons organization.</p><h2><b>Falcons move forward with Kirk Cousins as backup</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Kirk-Cousins_f84c62.jpg"><figcaption>Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>If things do go that way, then the Falcons’ front office has only itself to blame. This was always a potential scenario, ever since Penix was drafted with the No. 8 pick in April. Given, Cousins was signed a month prior, so it was always expected what type of hysteria this would eventually bring.</p><p>“You are kind of one day at a time right now, and you kind of always are in this league,” Cousins said, “and in the offseason, that’s when conversations happen, but we’re not there yet.”</p><p>The Falcons need to win their last three games in order to stand a chance at winning the NFC South, and securing a playoff berth. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are cruising right now as one of the league’s hottest teams, but still sit just one game ahead of Atlanta at 8-6.</p><p>Penix would need to lift the team over the Giants, Washington Commanders and Carolina Panthers to conclude the regular season. Each of those are winnable matchups, which makes this situation all the more riveting.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2024 SEASON STATS
RECEPTIONS	RECEIVING YDS	TOUCHDOWNS	POSITION RANK
14.6	167.3	2.9	94

2024 SEASON STATS
RECEPTIONS	RECEIVING YDS	TOUCHDOWNS	POSITION RANK
14.6	167.3	2.9	94

KhaDarel
Hodge

2022 Projected vs Actual Pts

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