Falcons are in good hands at QB, but making the playoffs may have to wait

ATLANTA — Two games into the Michael Penix Jr. era, it’s clear the Atlanta Falcons are in good hands at quarterback. A gut-wrenching loss to the Washington Commanders, who rallied from a 17-7 halftime deficit to pull out a 30-24 overtime victory Sunday night, dealt a huge blow to Atlanta’s postseason hopes. If Morris had used his two timeouts during that final drive of the fourth quarter, Atlanta would’ve had time to get Patterson in position for a more reasonable field-goal attempt. Stock down Morris’ game management issues turned up the heat on a first-year coach who was hired with a clear mandate to get the Falcons back to the playoffs for the first time since 2017.