00:00I can't imagine where his quarterback played.
00:02And then I was thinking back to the Raider game
00:04when Kirk Cousins was playing against the Raiders,
00:08I think on Sunday night or Monday night football.
00:11And I think he was eventually benched.
00:13He was benched the next game.
00:14And I was like, I've never seen an offense
00:16where literally you have zero chance of completing a pass.
00:19Like, you cannot complete a pass.
00:21That game with Cooper Rush,
00:22I definitely think he's not a very good quarterback
00:25or he would not have been unemployed the day that we brought him in.
00:29And it wasn't like anybody else in football wanted him.
00:31But I also think he was banged up with the back spasms.
00:33So you had this combination of a guy that you didn't have a chance
00:37to complete a pass down the field.
00:38I mean, that offense was the most pedestrian and wearing out Bijan,
00:44just wearing him the hell out.
00:46So I said that's the worst situation I've ever seen.
00:50Don't belittle me whether you played in the NFL,
00:53whether you've been a sports talk host for years,
00:55whether you're a Twitter warrior or just some, you know,
00:59a football maven that thinking about Jack Strand is ridiculous.
01:05Why would that be ridiculous?
01:07Why would that be ridiculous?
01:09I watched Cooper Rush, and I don't mean this
01:13with any kind of shock jock mentality.
01:17There was no way to be worse than Cooper Rush.
01:20There was no way.
01:22He could not escape anybody.
01:23He looked like, you know, a wooden Indian up there.
01:28He had no mobility.
01:30Couldn't get passes off.
01:33He had six passes batted down.
01:35When he did, he was completely inaccurate.
01:37He did not see T.J. Watt in the play that cost you the game.
01:41You could not.
01:43You had zero catches by Zachariah Branch,
01:46zero catches by Kyle Pitts,
01:48two for Drake.
01:49Like, he could not have been worse.
01:53So, well, don't tell myself and Sandra that we're crazy to say,
01:57give Jack Strand a chance.
01:58Here's what I know.
01:59There's a big pass rush.
02:00That bulldozer could maybe run seven yards to get you first down.
02:04Is he going to throw?
02:05You can't throw it any worse.
02:06So, all this stuff about he's not ready,
02:09I don't know.
02:10Was Cooper Rush ready?
02:12Wait, 404-726-0929.
02:16404-726-0929.
02:18I don't know anything.
02:19I've talked to NFL guys that have nothing to do with the Falcons, okay?
02:24And they are like, boy, I've never heard of this.
02:27You're medically cleared and your guy won't play.
02:29What a weird place to be.
02:31What a weird kind of brand for Penix to put out there.
02:35What a tough spot for Stefanski.
02:37So, I don't have any insight other than guys that are not with the Falcons
02:41in terms of they just are like, you know, the kid has to play, right?
02:46So, take that for what it is.
02:48I have no inside word.
02:49I think Michael Penix is going to play.
02:52I think he has to play.
02:54This week?
02:55Yeah.
02:55I think he has to just.
02:57You have another day, and I think he's got to look within himself
03:00and say, why am I even an athlete?
03:02Why am I competing?
03:03You know, I do believe Kyle Pitts likes him a lot, and Bichon and Drake.
03:07They're all young guys.
03:08They all came in around the same time.
03:10They're all similar demographic.
03:12Penix's a little older, right?
03:14Because he was around longer.
03:15I think him and Kyle are probably closer.
03:17And I think unless, you know, you don't have any of that fire,
03:24you're watching your guys.
03:26Now, it wasn't a good look on the sideline.
03:27I totally agree with you, Sandra.
03:29Watching him in Mahomes was maddening.
03:31Sorry, watching him in Tua was maddening.
03:34And I understand why you came in here guns blazing,
03:36because he hadn't had a chance to be on the microphone yet
03:38and say, like, that was unbelievable to watch.
03:41Like, what the hell are Penix and Tua?
03:43Well, the good news is this week they're at Mercedes-Benz.
03:45You know how they have those cool lounges right on the field
03:47that they can just put them in there.
03:49They can watch on the TV and hang out.
03:51I think that's probably better for them,
03:52and you'll keep them behind that little gate.
03:55But that, to me, just you can't teach want.
03:58You can't teach fire.
03:59You can't teach it.
04:01In terms of rooting your team on.
04:02Being a great teammate that was literally in it.
04:06You can't, you just.
04:08I mean, Michael Penix's personality, I said this,
04:11and he is a great kid.
04:13People love Michael Penix.
04:14I've talked to family members.
04:16I know guys who, he doesn't have, you know,
04:18he's a homebody.
04:19He's a family guy.
04:21He is, he's no sooner going to be in a club.
04:24He wants to be at home, you know,
04:26playing video games and being with his, you know, family members
04:30and not getting in trouble.
04:31To it as well.
04:31Like, there's not a bad word said about him.
04:33He's nice and he's a homebody.
04:36Yeah, I mean, but, like, he just says things in front of the media
04:40I've never really heard.
04:41Like, Michael Penix just gets the microphone and tells you,
04:44nah, I'm not ready to go yet, man.
04:46No, I mean, I'm going to wait this thing.
04:49And, like, he's just being honest.
04:51So, yeah, it doesn't seem like he's got that dog in him,
04:53to quote Carl or Mike.
04:55So, that's troubling.
04:57The guy was an unbelievable college football player,
05:01brought Washington to a national title game,
05:03absolutely torched Steve Sarkeesian and company,
05:05beat Oregon and Bo Nix twice,
05:07can throw it all over the field,
05:0920 yards and farther,
05:10was the number one passer in college football.
05:12So, it's not like, you know, it, it, it,
05:15now, again, you don't draft him because you have Kirk Cousins
05:17and you probably don't draft him because he has two ACLs,
05:19but it's not like he didn't have the pedigree.
05:21So, I think he has to go.
05:23And my question to you, for the listener,
05:24if he can't go, according to him,
05:27what do you want the Falcons to do?
05:29What do you want them to do?
05:31They're asking Tua.
05:32I don't know, you have an oblique
05:33and now you're going to go six days later?
05:36Like, you're not going to start Jack Strand,
05:38so maybe it's a silly question,
05:39but, like, what else are they going to do
05:41other than, say, Cooper Rush?
05:43I mean, I literally...
05:44Do you go make a move?
05:45Do you go make a trade?
05:47And it brings me back to the Browns,
05:50and they trade, I mean, the Bengals got in trouble,
05:52went and traded for Joe Flacco, of all folks.
05:54And, I mean, if you're, if you're just...
05:57The message will be very clear.
06:00So, here's why that's probably a good point.
06:02If Cooper Rush is supposed to go for the next three
06:05or four weeks, then I think you probably do
06:06because you can't keep playing Cooper Rush.
06:08That guy can't play quarterback.
06:10And if you won't, Jack Strand,
06:11if you're saying he's a Division II kid
06:13who's a rookie, I can't play him, then, yeah.
06:16Or I would absolutely, and I wasn't in the room,
06:19but I did not hear a follow-up.
06:20Why are you so definitive?
06:23About Jack Strand.
06:24Why are you so definitive that it was...
06:26Did you consider putting Jack Strand in?
06:28No.
06:28All right, let's hear the initial question,
06:30and we've got a bunch of calls here.
06:31So, very simple to lead the press conference.
06:36What's up with our quarterback?
06:37Do you have any clarity on how the QB spot
06:41will look this week health-wise with anybody?
06:43I don't have any updates on that today, Daniel.
06:46Coach, do you know the timeline for that decision?
06:48I mean, do you expect it to be by Wednesday,
06:50or could it last all the way through the week
06:52until we get to Friday and Saturday?
06:53Yeah, we'll see, Mark.
06:55I really don't have an update yet.
06:56I need to get through today
06:58before we can really make that determination.
07:00The incomparable Mark Zinno chiming in.
07:02Let's ask him about Cooper...
07:05Sorry.
07:07Let's ask about, in general, Cooper's play on Sunday.
07:11Well, the first part is, like I mentioned to you guys,
07:14Cooper, you know, battled.
07:15Obviously, you want the turnovers back.
07:18You have to give credit to the Steelers as well on those plays.
07:22So, those are things that we can learn from.
07:24All of us can learn from those plays.
07:25And then, you know, talking about helping,
07:27I think that's our job as coaches.
07:29We want to help all of our guys,
07:30whether you're playing quarterback
07:31or any position on our team.
07:33So, ways to give you easy completions,
07:36ways to run the football,
07:38ways to, you know, score points any which way.
07:41So, that's a constant thing that we're looking at.
07:44But, you know, that's not unique to that game at all.
07:49There's things that we feel like we can do better.
07:52And that's what, again, like I mentioned,
07:54those are the conversations that we have today,
07:56that we can be better as coaches,
07:58we can be better as players,
07:59and let's learn from this one.
08:00Yeah, I get it, generic enough.
08:01There's nothing they could do with him.
08:03You couldn't call a play.
08:03You couldn't complete a pass.
08:05You couldn't get it through those linemen.
08:06I mean, it was, you know, you can't play anywhere.
