Patrick Mahomes was instrumental in the Atlanta Falcons’ selection of Michael Penix Jr. in the 2024 draft

The selects Michael Penix Jr. speak Atlanta Falcons was one of the big surprises of the 2024 NFL Draft. What few people know is the role Kansas City Chiefs strategist Patrick Mahomes played in the The hawks decision to use their first round pick to select the University of Washington product.

Just in mid-March, a few weeks before the draft, the Falcons had an extended veteran Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract. With a top-tier quarterback signed to a mid-term deal, most expected him to opt for a defensive player, whether it be a cornerback or linebacker.

However, the The hawks the front office surprised everyone by using their first-round pick, eighth overall, to select Penix. According to NFL initiated Albert Breereverything has a logical explanation, which begins with the selection of Mahomes in the 2017 Draft.

Terry Fontenot and Patrick Mahomes

In a conversation with Pat McAfee, Breer recalled that Fontenot was part of the New Orleans Saints staff in 2017, the same year, the Chefs do Mahomes the tenth overall pick in the draft.

“I’m sure you know that, Tap, Sean Payton was very, very high, like all the saints, on Patrick Mahomes,” Breer recalled. According to the insider, “They (the Saints front office) felt like the reason they lost Patrick Mahomes that year was because news of their interest came to light.”

The analyst explained that Fontenot would have learned the lesson. Breer speculated that the The hawks the higher-ups would have thought, “If we like one of these quarterbacks, we can’t tell anyone, we have to sit there at eight o’clock, we have to pretend to take Dallas Turner Or Byron Murphy Or Malik Nabers or someone else.”

Penix is ​​Atlanta’s quarterback of the future

For its part, Fontenot himself explained, in statements to local media, that the Falcons will use the same strategy with Penix that the Green Bay Packers used with Jordan Love.

It is worth remembering the Packers selected Love in the first round of 2020 Drafteven if they had Aaron Rodgers under contract. The veteran was MVP in 2020 and 2021, but after leaving the team in 2023, Love was ready to take charge of the offense and led the team to the playoffs.

“I think you have to think like that” Fontenot explain, “If we see a player that we think can be a franchise QB at any time, then you have to bring that player in because we’re talking about the next four to five years and beyond.”