Notebook: Giants, Falcons meet with different quarterbacks

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Both the Giants and Atlanta Falcons will start different quarterbacks than they did last week when the teams meet Sunday in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It will be Drew Lock for the Giants and Michael Penix, Jr. for the Falcons.

Coach Brian Daboll said today Lock will make his third start of the season for the Giants. It’s the second time Lock will step in for an injured Tommy DeVito, who is in the NFL concussion protocol after he was hurt in the Giants’ loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Lock also started the Thanksgiving Day game in Dallas four days after DeVito hurt his throwing forearm vs. Tampa Bay. He also started against New Orleans on Dec. 8, hurt his heel and elbow and was inactive as the third quarterback vs. the Ravens.

Lock said the frequent change is perfectly normal for someone in his position.

“It’s the job,” he said this afternoon after practice. “Me and Tommy both came here not as a starter. You’ve got to be ready for your time to be the starter. It gets pulled back, you go back in, it gets pulled back, you go back in. It’s part of the gig. You always want to be the guy out there. It stinks standing on the sideline. But sometimes that happens, and you’ve just got to be ready for your next one.”

Lock then suggested perhaps it’s not so typical when asked what it’s like for the two players in the job share arrangement?

“It’s definitely different,” he said. “But, at the same time, Tommy was upset when he got his bell rung, he didn’t get to play. I went in there, the heel thing happened and then he goes back in. We’ve just had some unfortunate things happen and we just keep rolling with the punches.”

Lock and DeVito were both limited in practice today. That’s a step forward for Lock, who didn’t practice last Wednesday and Thursday and was limited Friday.

“I’m feeling a lot better,” Lock said. “It’s good to be back out there with the guys, practicing. It’s not fun when you’re in here doing treatment, missing stuff and not playing.”

The Falcons will line up with Penix, who will take the first meaningful snaps of his NFL career. The eighth selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, Penix replaces 13-year veteran Kirk Cousins, who has thrown nine interceptions and one touchdown pass in the previous four games. Atlanta has scored more than 20 points just once in its last five games.

Penix’s only playing time this season was mop-up duty in lopsided losses to Seattle on Oct. 20 and at Denver on Nov. 17. He completed three of five passes for 38 yards and was sacked once. Penix played only a few snaps in one preseason game.

“The defensive guys, a few days before were doing a lot of work on Cousins,” Daboll said. “Penix hasn’t played, I would say, a ton. He got in the Denver game when the score was out of hand, like seven snaps or somewhere around there (seven against Seattle, 13 vs. Denver). Played in the preseason against Miami. And then we have tape from him in college. So, catching up to do relative to the starting quarterback.”

Penix played his first four collegiate seasons at Indiana University before blossoming into a star in two years at the University of Washington. He had back-to-back seasons with 4,500+ passing yards and 30+ touchdown passes in 2022-23. The only other Power 5 quarterback to do that in the last 15 years was Patrick Mahomes at Texas Tech in 2015-16. Last year, Penix threw for an FBS-leading 4,903 yards and 36 touchdowns and led the Huskies to the College Playoff National Championship Game, where they lost to Michigan.

“He was a good player at Indiana,” Daboll said. “He was a good player at Washington. Made it all the way to the national championship game. Had a lot of good pieces around him. He’s a good quarterback.”

Penix will be the first NFL quarterback to make his NFL starting debut – and the first to have thrown five or fewer career passes – against the Giants since Dallas’ Dak Prescott on Sept. 11, 2016. Prescott completed 25 of 45 passes for 227 yards with neither a touchdown pass nor an interception in a 20-19 Giants’ victory. The last first-round quarterback to start their first NFL game in Week 14 or later of their rookie season was Mahomes for Kansas City in the 2017 season finale in Denver.

Lock will make his third start of the season and 26^th of his career as the Giants try to end their franchise-record-tying nine-game losing streak. Against Dallas and New Orleans, he completed 42 of 81 passes for 405 yards, no touchdowns, and two interceptions. Lock was the Giants’ leading rusher in each game, with 57 yards, including an 8-yard touchdown, against the Cowboys, and 59 yards vs the Saints.

But he emerged from the latter game with injuries to his heel and left elbow and was designated as the emergency third quarterback against Baltimore. When DeVito was unable to play in the second half, Tim Boyle stepped in and ended the Giants’ four-game touchdown pass drought with a 23-yarder to Malik Nabers. But if something happened to Boyle, Lock would have been the next man up.

“Being the third and then having the first go down was different,” Lock said. “It’s just a different mentality – but at the same time, I was trying to not do too much just in case I had to go in. Then Tommy goes down, I’m like, ‘Okay, I might actually have to go in.’ You’ve got to start picking up and getting loose and ready to go and see if this heel is going to let me go.”

Boyle could return to No. 3 this week, depending on DeVito’s progress.

“He’s moving through the protocol,” Daboll said. “He’ll do something today. I envision him being – I mean, who knows with concussions, but he’ll have a chance. If he is, he’ll be number two.”

*The Giants once again had a lengthy injury report with 19 players either missing practice or limited.

The five non-participants included Aaron Stinnie, who played every snap at left guard against Baltimore but is now in the concussion protocol. He was joined by three linebackers – Bobby Okereke (back), Brian Burns (ankle-neck) and Patrick Johnson (knee) – and cornerback Greg Stroman (shin).

“I think Burns is day-to-day,” Daboll said. “Patrick is longer. I think he’ll be out probably this week.”

With Jon Runyan, Jr. out for the season, Daboll said rookie Jake Kubas would take snaps at guard.

In addition to Lock and DeVito, the players limited in practice were wide receivers Malik Nabers (knee/foot) and Wan’Dale Robinson (shoulder), running back Tyrone Tracy (ankle), tight end Chris Manhertz (ankle), center John Michael Schmitz (ankle), defensive linemen Rakeem Nunez-Roches (neck/shoulder) and Cory Durden (shoulder), (defensive backs Tae Banks (rib), Cor’Dale Flott (quad), Dane Belton (knee), Dru Phillips (shoulder), and Art Green (shoulder).

Daboll said he is “hopeful” Banks and Flott, the Giants’ starting corners, will play in Atlanta.