After another disappointing Kirk Cousins performance on Monday Night Football, there were whispers that the Atlanta Falcons would turn to their rookie quarterback, Michael Penix Jr., to become their starting quarterback for the remainder of the season. Then, at approximately 8:30 pm ET on Tuesday, it was announced that the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft would be the new starting quarterback for the Falcons.
Falcons fans across the internet rejoiced, fed up with what they've seen from Cousins, hopeful the rookie can lead them to one final playoff push this season. While Falcons fans responded positively, the betting market had the opposite reaction. Surprisingly, the odds moved against Atlanta for their Week 16 game against the Giants. Let's take a look. The Falcons were 10-point favorites earlier in the day on FanDuel. After the announcement was made that the rookie will be making his first career start, the betting market jumped on the Giants, moving the line down to Falcons -8.5, a movement of 1.5 points. The total dropped half a point from 41.0 to 40.5. While Penix may be the smart move long-term for the Falcons, laying this many points on a rookie in his first career start does seem like a risky proposal