Michael Penix Jr.'s chemistry with Drake London carried over to offseason

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Michael Penix Jr. dropped back, took a look to his near and fto the shot alert connected a rope. There were 3 seconds near successful the archetypal fractional of the Atlanta Falcons' Week 18 crippled against the Carolina Panthers.

Penix saw Drake London successful azygous sum against Panthers rookie cornerback Shemar Bartholomew and conscionable enactment the shot successful London's vicinity, playing the likelihood that his champion receiver would haul it in. And helium did, for a 20-yard touchdown catch. Penix got the walk to London's backmost shoulder, truthful helium was the lone 1 who could drawback it.

"Just giving those guys a chance, conscionable giving those opportunities to marque those big-time plays due to the fact that they're playmakers, and that's what they're going to bash with the shot successful their hands," Penix said aft the game.

That was lone Penix's 3rd week getting full-time reps with London and the Falcons' first-team receivers aft helium was named starting backmost pursuing Kirk Cousins' benching. Those connections and chemistry were inactive precise overmuch successful their nascent stages.

For Atlanta to excel successful 2025, Penix and his wide receivers request to jell successful a large way. That process has already begun, arsenic the backmost and his receivers person gotten unneurotic successful the offseason up of voluntary offseason practices, which statesman this week.

Penix has been wide that helium believes the Falcons person a accidental to person the champion discourtesy successful the NFL. For that to hap -- a winning play and playoff berth to travel -- that spot betwixt backmost and receivers needs to proceed to develop.

"[Penix and London] were capable to link successful the offseason together, and past evidently we've been connected the writer for a mates of weeks now, but I deliberation it'll conscionable proceed to turn for the constricted magnitude of reps that they did person going into those games," Falcons violative coordinator Zac Robinson said. "And precise awesome to spot ... they might've prepped a play 1 clip successful practice, and they took it to the tract and had success. So, I deliberation it continues to grow."

London had vocation highs successful catches (100), receiving yards (1,271) and touchdowns (9) successful 2024. And those numbers came contempt a five-game agelong for Cousins that included 1 touchdown walk and 9 interceptions. In ESPN's analytics-driven Receivers Score, London finished eighth among wide receivers and was tied for 2nd successful getting unfastened among receivers with astatine slightest 100 targets.

"I wouldn't commercialized Drake for anybody," Robinson said.

It wasn't conscionable London who stood retired for the Falcons past twelvemonth from a receiving standpoint. Darnell Mooney, a escaped cause signing from the Chicago Bears, had a career-high 5 touchdowns to spell on with 992 yards connected 64 receptions. Ray-Ray McCloud III had a vocation twelvemonth crossed the board, mounting idiosyncratic marks successful catches (62) and receiving yards (686).

London, Mooney and McCloud are apt to beryllium Penix's apical receivers going into 2025, similar they were the last 3 games of past season. Tight extremity Kyle Pitts was besides idiosyncratic Penix developed a spot with rapidly astatine the extremity of 2024.

That is simply a coagulated group, but Falcons wide receivers manager Ike Hilliard is bullish connected the names beyond those regulars, arsenic well. Hilliard said the squad is "better from a extent standpoint" astatine wide receiver successful 2025 than it was past year.

Atlanta is "expecting a large jump" from Casey Washington successful his 2nd twelvemonth successful the league. He was a sixth-round prime successful 2024 and developed a chemistry connected the 2nd squad with Penix quickly, arsenic did Chris Blair, different subordinate Hilliard expects to spot much clip this season. Washington and Blair combined for lone 2 catches past year.

There's besides KhaDarel Hodge, a peculiar teams ace who had the game-winning touchdown drawback past twelvemonth against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers astatine location connected "Thursday Night Football." Hodge is the incumbent for the 4th wide receiver role. Washington, Blair and respective others specified arsenic Jesse Matthews, Dylan Drummond and instrumentality specializer Jamal Agnew volition vie for the remaining spots.

But determination are caller faces who tin propulsion done during OTAs and grooming camp, including undrafted escaped agents Nick Nash and Quincy Skinner Jr. Nash made respective bully catches during rookie minicamp and was an All-American astatine San José State past play with an FBS-leading 16 touchdown catches. Hilliard besides sung the praises of erstwhile CFL prima Makai Polk and David Sills V, who has started 7 games successful 3 seasons with the New York Giants and Denver Broncos. Hilliard said Sills precocious got up to 22 mph successful sprints.

"[Nash has] got a accidental [to marque the team], and truly each of them bash and that's what's going to beryllium amusive astir the process of watching this thing," Hilliard said.

Ultimately, though, it volition each statesman and extremity with London, who conscionable had his fifth-year declaration enactment picked up for 2026. With Penix, London and Bijan Robinson, the Falcons mightiness person 3 franchise violative stars astatine 25 years aged and younger. London and Robinson are inactive conscionable 23.

"Since [London] walked successful the door, time one, his makeup, competitiveness -- helium conscionable keeps ascending," Falcons adjunct wide manager Kyle Smith said. "He's got to instrumentality that adjacent leap and he's taken connected much of a enactment relation and each those things."