FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and wide receiver Drake London had a conversation at halftime of last Sunday night's against the Washington Commanders. It was about how the two had only played six quarters together, since Penix replaced struggling starter Kirk Cousins.
It wasn't the kind of talk one would expect in Week 17 with the Falcons still very much in the playoff race at the time.
The Falcons ended up losing to the Commanders 30-24 through no fault of either Penix and London. Both made big plays late in regulation to send the game to overtime, especially Penix's fourth-and-13 laser-beam touchdown pass to tight end Kyle Pitts to tie the game with 1:19 left.
It was Penix's second start, and he led the Falcons on a game-tying drive and nearly a game-winning one. But kicker Riley Patterson's field goal with 2 seconds left in regulation came up short.
"[Penix's] an absolute dog, and that goes with everybody on the offense," London said. "I'm not going to say too much, because they know themselves. I'm the same type of person. I don't need nobody to get me going or anything like that.
"So, he's an absolute dog and he stays poised. You may not see it, but he got that s--- in his eyes for sure."
Penix also had a 31-yard pass to London on fourth-and-11 earlier on that drive. His final stat line -- 19-of-35 for 223 yards with a touchdown and interception -- was uneven. But he came through in the clutch impressively with calm and poise.
While the Falcons no longer control their playoff destiny at 8-8, London, a third-year player, couldn't help in taking some solace in the fact that he and Penix will be a tandem for the foreseeable future.
"It's only been eight quarters and we're still getting a groove for everything and we're still doing things like that," London said. "So, definitely exciting. But you can't say right now because we've gotta lock in again."
The Falcons can still win the NFC South with a win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS) and a New Orleans Saints victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. If that scenario plays out, Atlanta would get a postseason home game.
Penix will be out there again in Week 18. The plan was never for him to start games this season, let alone in a playoff race. The Falcons signed Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract in the offseason, with $90 million guaranteed. A few weeks later, they selected Penix with the No. 8 overall pick in the draft, with idea Penix would sit and learn from Cousins for potentially two years or more, like Jordan Love did with Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay.
That's now how things played out. The Falcons started 6-3 -- their best mark through nine games since a 2016 Super Bowl season -- and Cousins was rolling. But the wheels fell off. Atlanta went on a four-game losing streak in which Cousins threw eight interceptions. After gutting out a Week 15 win over the struggling Las Vegas Raiders, Falcons head coach Raheem Morris made the change to Penix, who promptly beat the woeful New York Giants in his first career start. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the Falcons are expected to release Cousins before his roster bonus is due on March 17.
Penix missed some throws against the Commanders, including a fade in the end zone to London at the end of the second quarter and a go route to open running Bijan Robinson earlier in the game. That's to be expected, Morris said.
"Mike throws the ball with great anticipation," Morris said. "He lets that thing go -- a la the fourth down to Kyle Pitts in the back of the end zone -- throwing that ball well before the break, in and out of the break, in between two defenders. Great anticipation.
"And when you throw the ball that way, just like on the interception, if somebody runs the wrong route and you throw the ball with great anticipation that they're going to be there and they're not, that lets you down and you can get an interception."
And that, Morris said, is something that can only come with time together and reps, which Penix just doesn't have enough yet with the starting wide receivers.
"I can only think about the tandems that have been together for a long time when you're talking about the great ones, right?" Morris said. "Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase, that is time on task, and that's what we're talking about when you're talking about being able to get those things.
"It is a tall task to ask [Penix] to step in and be able to do those things. And it's the reason we didn't absolutely want to do those things right away. We were put in a situation that we are."
The Falcons are in the situation now where they might have to look toward next season earlier than they wished. But that future also represents the development of that connection between Penix and London, as well as Darnell Mooney, Pitts and others.
"It is going to come," Penix said. "We're going to continue to grow. With that connection, we will.
"So, it is tough. Some of the things I wish I had back, but at the end of the day I've got to continue to progress, and I got to flush it and be ready for the next play."