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12/28 10:14 CST Rams Pro Bowler Stafford heads into Monday night game against
the Falcons as the top passer in NFL
Rams Pro Bowler Stafford heads into Monday night game against the Falcons as
the top passer in NFL
By CHARLES ODUM
AP Sports Writer
ATLANTA (AP) --- Atlanta Falcons coaches and front office personnel couldn't
avoid a comparison when they witnessed the arm talent of Michael Penix Jr. in a
workout before the 2024 NFL draft.
The Falcons' decision-makers thought they were seeing the next Matthew
Stafford. For coach Raheem Morris and offensive coordinator Zac Robinson, who
saw Stafford up close during their time as Los Angeles Rams assistants, that
created a strong incentive to make Penix the No. 8 overall pick in the 2004
draft even though the team already had invested heavily in free agent
quarterback Kirk Cousins.
As the Falcons prepare to face Stafford and the Rams on Monday night, they
aren't backing away from the comparison, even in a season Stafford is leading
the league in touchdown passes (40), passing yards (4,179) and passer rating
(112.1). Penix is recovering from season-ending surgery on his left knee.
Morris and Robinson still are fans of Stafford --- and they still believe Penix
has similar arm talent.
"You hate comparing guys apples to apples, but there were definitely a lot of
similarities in their game," Robinson said. "I think the ability to touch any
part of the field was a thing that stuck out, and I think Mike's going to just
continue to grow with that next level of layer and throws. Obviously,
Stafford's got every throw in his book now, and Mike did a great job this year
on some of our second-level dagger intermediate cuts, being able to layer
throws over linebackers. That's kind of the next level that you need, but 100%
that was an easy comp."
Stafford earned only his third Pro Bowl honor this season and could be bound
for his first AP All-Pro award.
"It's great," Stafford said of the Pro Bowl recognition. "It's a great honor to
get. Fans are involved, players are involved, coaches ... whoever's involved is
involved. I appreciate it. I play this game to try to play at a high level and
get respect from the people that you do it with and play against. That part of
it is really cool."
At 37, Stafford has led the Rams (11-4) to one of the best records in the NFL
as he enjoys perhaps his most productive season. He is only one touchdown pass
away from matching his career high set in 2011 with Detroit and matched with
the Rams in 2021.
"What's interesting is there are a lot of layers to the Pro Bowl stuff, but
when you talk to the real football people, I don't think he's seen that way,"
Rams coach Sean McVay said of Stafford having only two previous Pro Bowl
seasons. "I think he's seen as a guy that's one of the best to ever do it. I
think that's been very well acknowledged this year, but I think it's probably
overdue."
McVay's view of the respect for Stafford was supported by strong compliments
from Morris and Robinson.
"He is awesome," Morris said, adding he remembers being the Rams' defensive
coordinator from 2021-23 and watching Stafford abuse his defense in practice.
"I watched him ... have an absolute ball while he's torturing us," Morris said.
"I was able to observe a guy that every time he took the field, he felt like he
had a chance to win, and we did. I watched him breathe confidence into the
organization, the coaches, his players, all-hands-on-deck mentality on
everything that he had going on with everything. He's just been absolutely fun
to watch, especially up close."
Robinson said Stafford is "one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game.
He's a sure-fire first-ballot Hall of Famer."
Stafford was the No. 1 overall pick by Detroit in the 2009 NFL draft after
wowing representatives of all 32 NFL teams at his personal workout at Georgia.
Morris and Robinson were similarly impressed after making the cross-country
flight to attend Penix's workout at Washington.
Penix took over as Atlanta's starter for the final three games of his 2024
rookie season before entering this season as the full-time starter. The Falcons
(6-9) were 3-6 in Penix's nine starts this season. He completed 60.1% of his
passes for 1,982 yards with nine touchdowns and three interceptions.
Cousins has helped the Falcons win back-to-back games over Tampa Bay and
Arizona leading into their home game against the Rams. Though Cousins has
proved he can still be an effective starter when healthy, the starting role is
reserved for Penix in 2026.
Robinson says he's eager to see Penix continue to develop into a quarterback
who can earn more comparisons to Stafford. Robinson was a sophomore at Oklahoma
State and Stafford was a junior at Georgia when both attended the Manning
quarterback camp and Robinson first saw what he believed to be unique talent.
"From the first time you just saw him throw a football, he's arguably the most
natural and talented thrower in the history of the game," Robinson said. "I
mean, if you're wanting to look how to throw a football, it should look exactly
like Matthew Stafford."
___
AP freelance writer Dan Greenspan contributed to this report.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
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