FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — For the second season in a row, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. will make prime-time history.
When Penix and J.J. McCarthy from the Minnesota Vikings take the field at U.S. Bank Stadium in Week 2, it'll mark the first-ever "Sunday Night Football" matchup on NBC where both quarterbacks have a career total of five starts or fewer. Penix will be making his fifth career start, while McCarthy will notch his second.
Carson Wentz and Dak Prescott were the only other quarterback duo to have 10 starts or fewer and face off on "Sunday Night Football" since NBC took over the broadcast in 2006. They did so Oct. 30, 2016, when Prescott's Dallas Cowboys beat Wentz's Philadelphia Eagles by a score of 29-23 in overtime inside AT&T Stadium. Wentz was the Eagles' first-round draft pick in 2016, while Prescott was a fourth-rounder for the Cowboys.
Both Penix and McCarthy were first-round draft picks last year. Penix was the No. 8 overall selection. McCarthy was No. 10.
McCarthy, however, sustained a season-ending injury during the Vikings' first preseason game. He never played a snap during his rookie season as a result. Sam Darnold, who's now with the Seattle Seahawks, was Minnesota's starter throughout the year.
When Penix joined the Falcons in 2024, the plan was for him to begin as a backup and develop behind veteran Kirk Cousins. That plan changed in Week 16 after performance issues forced Atlanta to sideline Cousins. Penix's first career start turned into a 34-7 win against the New York Giants inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The very next game was Penix's first prime-time moment.
When the Falcons played the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium in Week 17, it marked the first time in NFL history that two first-round rookie quarterback started in the same prime-time game. The Commanders' Jayden Daniels was the No. 2 overall pick in Penix's draft class.
That "Sunday Night Football" game went to overtime, where the Commanders pulled through with a 30-24 win.
Penix enters this second spotlight opportunity with an 0-1 Falcons team looking to quickly rebound. He completed 27 of his 42 passes for 298 yards and a 50-yard touchdown to running back Bijan Robinson in Atlanta's 23-20 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Sunday. Penix also kept the ball six times for 21 yards rushing and a 4-yard touchdown.
The 25-year-old was definitely a highlight for the Falcons in Week 1.
"He's been excellent," Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said postgame. "He's been poised in great moments and he's been poised in big moments and he's been poised in moments like that just then. I can't say enough positive things about the young man and what he was able to do, even up to his last throw, potentially giving us a chance to win it in regulation."
Penix could continue to make Falcons history this Sunday, too. Not just prime-time. His 1,035 career passing yards in four starts marks the most by a Falcons quarterback all-time. If he throws for more than 242 yards in Minnesota, he'll surpass Mike Moroski for the five-start record.
Basically, in just his second professional season, Penix is already making his name known on a local and national level.
