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By Brian Jones
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Michael Penix Jr. led the Atlanta Falcons over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, and he just earned his first NFL award.
On Wednesday, the NFL announced that the Falcons quarterback has been named NFC Offensive Player of the Week after his performance in the team's 29-20 victory against San Francisco. Penix completed 73.5% of his pass attempts for 213 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions.
This is Penix's first-career Offensive Player of the Week Award, and he's the 11th Falcons quarterback in franchise history to win the award.
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“When No. 9 is out there, this is a completely different football team,” Falcons safety Jessie Bates III said Monday, per Daniel Flick of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I really, truly believe that he’s a franchise quarterback. … You can sleep good at night knowing you got Michael Penix playing quarterback for you.”
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Michael Penix Jr. Is Having a Strong 2026 Season
“It’s just great playing beside Mike,” tight end Kyle Pitts said. “He’s an ultimate competitor. And seeing how he’s just growing each game, each week, it’s pretty cool to see.”
Sunday's game was Penix's 17th career NFL start. The Falcons selected Penix in the first round (No. 8 overall) of the 2024 NFL Draft, and he saw limited action during his rookie season. He was named the starting QB in 2025 but missed the second half of the season due to knee surgery.
This year, Penix has played in five of the Falcons' seven games and has looked like a franchise QB. He has completed 66.7% of his pass attempts for 1,157 yards, nine touchdowns, and one interception with a 109.1 passer rating.
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