Michael Cunningham: Drafting quarterback with No. 8 pick just doesn't make sense for Falcons

Also, Penix is a relatively older prospect. He’ll be 24 years old next week. It’s strange for the Falcons to take a long-term prospect at that age. There’s a chance that Penix won’t play meaningful snaps until he’s 26 or 27 years old.

“That’s not an issue,” Fontenot said of Penix’s age. “We have a lot of confidence in him, the way he plays the game.”

Who knows when we’ll see Penix play for the Falcons in a game that counts. I’m trying to give Fontenot the benefit of the doubt, but so much about this doesn’t make sense.

My criticism of the GM’s decision shouldn’t be construed as a knock on Penix. I like him a lot as a prospect. The left-hander throws a nice, accurate ball. Washington was 25-3 with Penix at quarterback. The Huskies won last year’s Pac-12 championship before losing to Michigan in the national title game. Washington’s No. 2 final ranking was its highest since it finished No. 2 in 1991.

Said Fontenot: “If we all are all sitting here a few years from now, and this guy is playing pretty good for somebody (else) ... and we passed him up, you can’t do that. If you believe in a quarterback, you have to take him. And if he sits for four or five years, that’s a great problem to have because we are doing so well at that position.”

I don’t see it that way. If Penix is sitting for four or five years, it will mean the Falcons could have drafted a top prospect who helped them win during that time. Penix’s rookie contract will be for four years with a team option for a fifth. The Falcons might not have much to go on when deciding whether it’s a good idea to pay Penix to keep him around.

Penix has a lot of potential. He just won’t get to fulfill it with the Falcons so long as Cousins is healthy. The Falcons have seven more picks in this draft. Fontenot said there are good players still available. But it will take a lot more luck for him to find an impact player in the later rounds than at No. 8.

Fontenot made his bold move after he and other team officials went to Seattle to meet with Penix on April 5. At the time, it seemed as if they were sending up a smokescreen. If they could make the QB-needy teams drafting below believe they might take Penix, then they could gain leverage for a trade. But it turns out the Falcons really were interested in drafting Penix.

It’s a very strange decision by Fontenot. It could turn out that he’s a visionary if, as Fontenot believes, Penix becomes a franchise player for the Falcons in the future. But as things stand now, picking Penix at No. 8 just doesn’t make sense.