One Position Weighs Down Ranking of Atlanta Falcons Trio

The Atlanta Falcons trio of Michael Penix Jr., Bijan Robinson and Drake London still has a lot to prove. In CBS Sports’ rankings of NFL trios (quarterback, running back and wide receiver, the trio landed at No. 20. Their rankings have them rated as below average alongside the Cardinals, Vikings, Raiders and Jaguars. 

Ten analysts each make their rankings, with the final ranking being a composite. The highest the panel ranked the Falcons was 17, with the lowest being 23.

While Robinson and London are proven talents that warrant a higher ranking, the uncertainty of Penix weighs them down. The explanation beyond that doesn’t reveal much for why the Falcons are ranked where they are. CBS Sports' Jared Durbin prioritized comparing the trio to the Denver Broncos trio. 

“The juxtaposition of the Falcons and Broncos on this list is fascinating. Penix made only three starts as a rookie. He looked pretty good in them, but that's still a much smaller track record than the one Nix has after their respective debut seasons. But Atlanta has Robinson and London, while Denver has Harvey and Sutton. And so you wind up with the Falcons a decent bit ahead of the Broncos in the rankings,” Durbin said.

The small sample size Penix has is a fair point. He only started three games in 2024 and played five games overall. However, even in that small sample size, his performance wasn’t eye-catching. Penix completed 58.1% of his passes for 775 yards and three touchdowns to three interceptions. 

Coming into the season as the prospective starter and having the system more fitted to him, Penix could see improvement this upcoming season. The other members of the trio will play a role in getting him there. 

Robinson had 1,456 rushing yards (third in the NFL) and 14 rushing touchdowns (tied third in the NFL). London had 1,271 yards (fourth in the NFL) and nine touchdowns (tied sixth in the NFL). 

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