Penix and the Falcons at Daniels and the Commanders in prime-time meeting of 1st-round rookie QBs

Atlanta (8-7) at Washington (10-5)

Sunday, 8:20 p.m. EST, NBC

BetMGM NFL odds: Commanders by 4

Against the spread: Falcons 7-8; Commanders 9-6

Series record: Washington leads 18-10-1

Last meeting: Commanders beat Falcons 24-16 on Oct. 15, 2023, at Atlanta.

Last week: Falcons beat Giants 34-7; Commanders beat Eagles 36-33.

Falcons: overall (9), rush (12), pass (6), scoring (19)

Falcons defense: overall (13), rush (12), pass (21), scoring (19)

Commanders offense: overall (5), rush (3), pass (16), scoring (4)

Commanders defense: overall (10), rush (29), pass (4), scoring (18)

Turnover differential: Falcons minus-5; Commanders plus-2

Falcons player to watch

Rookie QB Michael Penix Jr. made his first NFL start in easy mode at home against the Giants. The difficulty level rachets up at Washington, and the Commanders have a legitimate pass rush led by Dante Fowler Jr. Penix can rely on Bijan Robinson again, but may need to make some harder throws to get the job done this time.

Commanders player to watch

RB Brian Robinson Jr. fumbled twice against Philadelphia and has just one touchdown over the past four games. Daniels put the Commanders on his back last weekend working out of empty formations often, but Kliff Kingsbury's offense is predicated on running the ball to set up the pass and Austin Ekeler remains on injured reserve because of a concussion, so it's Robinson's show on the ground.

Key matchup

Commanders rookie QB Jayden Daniels vs. the Falcons' pass defense. Atlanta returned two interceptions for a touchdown and forced Drew Lock to fumble last week. Daniels is coming off throwing five TD passes to rally Washington and end Philadelphia's winning streak at 10 games. Prime time has not fazed Daniels so far, and it's worth wondering what his next trick will be.

Key injuries

Falcons: CB Antonio Hamilton left the Giants game with a quadriceps injury. ... CB Kevin King has a concussion.

Commanders: CB Marshon Lattimore, who missed more than a month with a hamstring injury, is again dealing with a hamstring injury. ... RT Andrew Wylie (groin) and WR Dyami Brown (hamstring) left the Eagles game in the fourth quarter. ... DT Jonathan Allen could return more than two months after surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle, which was originally thought to be season-ending.

Series notes

Washington has won the past three meetings. These teams are playing for a fourth consecutive season. ... This is the first prime-time game in NFL history between two rookie QBs selected in the first round. Daniels was the No. 2 pick and Penix No. 8. ... The Falcons benched former Washington QB Kirk Cousins, a 2012 fourth-rounder, before Week 16 in favor of Penix. ... The Commanders can clinch a playoff berth with a win or a loss by Tampa Bay. The Buccaneers host Carolina on Sunday afternoon. ... Washington is 10-5 for the first time since 1991. The organization last won 11 games in 1987. Each of those seasons ended with a Super Bowl championship. ... Commanders coach Dan Quinn led Atlanta to the Super Bowl in the 2016 season. He is facing the Falcons for the first time since they fired him in 2020. Falcons coach Raheem Morris worked on Quinn's staff from 2015-20 and was the interim replacement four years ago. Morris also was an assistant with Washington from 2012-14 and interviewed for the job Quinn now has before getting hired by Atlanta.

Stats and stuff

Penix completed 18 of 27 passes for 202 yards last week. ... Robinson ran for 94 yards and two TDs against the Giants. Adding his two catches for 9 yards, it was his fourth consecutive game with 100 or more yards from scrimmage. ... WR Drake London is 22 yards receiving from his first 1,000-yard season. Darnell Mooney is 45 away from reaching that mark for the second time. ... LB Matthew Judon and S Jessie Bates had the pick-6s off Lock. Judon's interception was the first of his career. Bates had an INT in his previous game at Washington, Nov. 22, 2020, when playing for Cincinnati. ... LB Kaden Elliss has a career-high 131 tackles. Only seven players in the league have more. ... The Commanders beat the Eagles despite turning the ball over five times. ... Daniels has been selected rookie of the week 10 times. His five TD throws against Philadelphia, including his second to Jamison Crowder with 6 seconds left, made up for his two picks. ... WR Terry McLaurin has surpassed 1,000 yards receiving for a fifth season in a row. He had 919 in 14 games as a rookie in 2019 and missed two because of injury. ... Crowder and WR Olamide Zaccheaus each had two TD catches last week. .... Zach Ertz is 28 yards receiving away from becoming the ninth tight end to 8,000. ... LB Frankie Luvu intercepted Kenny Pickett last week. ... LB Bobby Wagner leads Washington with 118 tackles.

Fantasy tip

If you need any Commanders receiver to help you win your league other than McLaurin, good luck. Especially since Noah Brown went down, it's anyone's guess who Daniels will target beyond “Scary Terry,” who is justifiably terrifying to opponents.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

The Associated Press