By CHARLES ODUMAP Sports Writer

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — The Atlanta Falcons' season, already in a free fall, took another hit on Wednesday when it was confirmed that quarterback Michael Penix Jr. will have season-ending surgery to repair the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

The Falcons announced Penix's surgery plans two days after saying the 25-year-old would be placed on injured reserve and miss at least four games while awaiting a second opinion on the severity of the injury. The team said the second opinion confirmed that Penix has a partially torn ligament in the knee.

The loss of Penix leaves veteran Kirk Cousins as the starter for the remainder of the season as the Falcons (3-7) prepare to play at New Orleans on Sunday.

“I never really took it for granted, but certainly when you’re out for a while and come back, you understand it is a privilege,” Cousins said after Wednesday's practice.

Penix suffered the injury in last week's 30-27 overtime loss to Carolina, which extended the Falcons’ losing streak to five games.

Easton Stick was signed to the active roster from the practice squad to serve as Cousins' backup. Former Tampa Bay backup Kyle Trask was signed to the practice squad and joined Wednesday's practice.

Coach Raheem Morris acknowledged that it's not known if Penix will recover in time for the start of the 2026 season.

“It’d be hard for me to say no right now,” Morris said, adding he has “nothing but confidence in Mike bouncing back, doing the things he needs to do in order to get to that point, to be able to go out there and play for us.”

Morris also said Penix’s season-ending surgery would impact the team’s offseason plan “100%” at quarterback.

“You’ve definitely got to go out and make some different plans when we talk about the offseason, but we’ll talk about that and address that when we get there,” Morris said.

If there is uncertainty about Penix's recovery schedule, the team is likely to look for help in free agency or the draft.

Penix had two ACL surgeries on his right knee during his college career. His last ACL surgery came in 2020 at Indiana. He transferred to Washington in 2021.

“It gives me great ease because of Michael, first of all knowing he’s been through it,” Morris said.

The Falcons also are expected to be without top wide receiver Drake London on Sunday. Morris said Wednesday that London, who also has a knee injury, won't play against the Saints and his status was “week to week.”

Penix missed the Falcons’ 34-10 loss to Miami on Oct. 26 with a bone bruise on his left knee. He suffered the more significant injury to the same knee on Sunday when he was hit by Panthers safety Tre’von Moehrig after throwing an incomplete pass.

Penix, the team’s 2024 first-round pick, was 13 of 16 for 175 yards against Carolina after completing only 12 of 28 passes in a 31-25 overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Berlin on Nov. 9.

The Falcons’ offense struggled in Cousins’ first start of the season in the loss to Miami. Morris noted there was uncertainty at quarterback in practice leading up to the game against the Dolphins, but this week Cousins will have the advantage of taking all the first-team snaps.

“We've got to find a way to get a win because he’s capable of doing it and he’s done it in the past,” Morris said, noting the Falcons started the 2024 season 6-3 with Cousins as the starter. The team finished 8-9, with Penix starting the last three games, for its seventh consecutive losing season.

Cousins completed 21 of 31 passes for 173 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions against Miami. It was his first start since a Dec. 16, 2024, win at Las Vegas.

NOTES: Inside linebacker Divine Deablo, who has missed four games because of a forearm injury, was designated to return to practice from the reserve/injured list.

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