Falcons
Falcons DB Kaden Elliss was anticipating QB Michael Penix, Jr. making a multitude of mistakes during training camp due to him being a young player, but he was surprised at how efficient he was.
“ I didn’t get him once all training camp, and he just didn’t do ill-advised things, but he still let his arm talent show every single day, ” Elliss said, via ESPN. “ And there’s a lot of guys with amazing arm talent that may be on a couch, that aren’t starting in the NFL, that can make every throw … but who can’t blend letting their arm talent shine while also playing smart, and Penix does both in such an amazing way. “
Penix has earned the full trust of HC Raheem Morris already.
“ I feel great with Mike in every game, ” Morris said. “ I think these games are huge. It’s fun to watch, it’s fun to be a part of. It’s fun to watch these guys grow and develop, and I’ve got the utmost confidence in Mike. “
Penix had a miserable week three against the Panthers. He rebounded from that down performance by leading his team to a win against the Commanders.
“ That is the telltale sign for quarterbacks: how you respond ,” Morris said. “ It doesn’t go your way, it’s not absolutely what you want it to look like in the game, and you have to respond and play better — and obviously, you’ve got to play better around him — but how do you respond? And I loved his practice response. I loved his verbal response to his team. I loved his response in the game, and I loved his response of knowing it’s a process and I love how he reacted to the criticism. I love how he reacted to everything. “
Panthers HC Dave Canales said RB Rico Dowdle has earned the right to become more involved in the offense.
“ And he will, ” Canales said, viaNY Times. “ We’ll find a way to do that. How we do that specifically, I don’t wanna really share those details of it. But certainly the world knows (with) the recognition he’s getting .”
Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard recognized how dynamic a runner Dowdle can be and isn’t surprised by his output.
“ To be honest, none of this really surprised me, ” Hubbard said. “ Rico’s a great player, an amazing player. He’s shown it throughout camp, every time he’s been here. He works hard. The opportunity came, he made the most of it. ”
Dowdle admitted that it was hard to get into a rhythm, splitting time, but he said the blocking up front should help mitigate that issue.