Former Pro Bowl WR Defends Michael Penix Pick

The Atlanta Falcons front office has been bushwacked by NFL media since their decision to take quarterback Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 pick, just weeks after signing Kirk Cousins to a $90-million guaranteed contract.

Former Cincinnati Bengals Pro Bowl wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh made an appearance on Colin Cowherd's show, and frankly, he's shocked at the backlash.

"No. No, not at all," said Houshmandzadeh when asked about the potential quarterback controversy in year two of the Cousins-Penix era.

"But I don’t understand the people that were up in arms about them drafting Penix," said Houshmandzadeh. "I don’t understand how people could ‘oh, why would they draft Penix?’ Because Kirk Cousins is older, and he’s coming off an injury."

That's an argument against signing Cousins, not and argument against drafting Penix. One ex-NFL executive thinks Penix could start Week 1 if Cousins has a setback with his injury.

“If Kirk Cousins is what the Falcons hope he is…”

“B, a B,” Cowherd interjected his thoughts on what he thinks Cousins is.

“When will they ever be in a position to draft a quarterback like Michael Penix? Never," Houshmandzadeh stated emphatically. “And so, if you have a chance to get him now, why wouldn’t you?

“Kirk Cousins is going to play two years. And if he’s playing more than two years, guess what? That’s a great problem to have because that means we’re winning. And so what’s the problem about them drafting Penix?”

Houshmandzadeh echoed the post-draft comments from Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot.

“If he sits for four or five years, that’s a great problem to have because we’re doing so well at that position,” Fontenot said after the draft.

Taken without context, saying that about a No. 8 overall pick is jarring, but the point was, the Falcons don't want to be in quarterback purgatory again. They were willing to spend big to nail the game's most important position.

Count Houshmandzadeh as a former player firmly in camp Penix.

“I told you this when I was on the show prior," said Houshmandzadeh. "I didn’t understand how people didn’t think he was a first rounder. Obviously that was all smoke and mirrors.”

Would the Falcons have been better off dumping $90 million of Cousins's guaranteed money into the defense if they were that high on Penix? Would the Falcons have had to move up to get Penix if they were still clearly in need of a quarterback heading into the draft? Would that have been cheaper than what they're paying Cousins to bridge the gap to Penix?

Those are questions we'll never know the answer to but are the "what ifs" that make NFL Draft prognostication and team building so fascinating.

The one thing we can be sure of: the Atlanta Falcons didn't want to watch the level of quarterback play they've seen the last few years, and they weren't afraid of the cost or reactions to make that happen.