Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, left, watches his pass slip past the hand of Seahawks defensive tackle Byron Murphy II, right, on Dec. 18 in Seattle. (AP file photo)

ATLANTA — Atlanta Falcons coaches and front office personnel couldn’t avoid a comparison when they witnessed the arm talent of Michael Penix Jr. in a workout before the 2024 NFL draft.

The Falcons’ decision-makers thought they were seeing the next Matthew Stafford. For coach Raheem Morris and offensive coordinator Zac Robinson, who saw Stafford up close during their time as Los Angeles Rams assistants, that created a strong incentive to make Penix the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 draft even though the team already had invested heavily in free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins.

As the Falcons prepare to face Stafford and the Rams tonight, they aren’t backing away from the comparison, even in a season Stafford is leading the league in touchdown passes (40), passing yards (4,179) and passer rating (112.1). Penix is recovering from season-ending surgery on his left knee.

Morris and Robinson still are fans of Stafford — and they still believe Penix has similar arm talent.

“You hate comparing guys apples to apples, but there were definitely a lot of similarities in their game,” Robinson said. “I think the ability to touch any part of the field was a thing that stuck out, and I think Mike’s going to just continue to grow with that next level of layer and throws. Obviously, Stafford’s got every throw in his book now, and Mike did a great job this year on some of our second-level dagger intermediate cuts, being able to layer throws over linebackers. That’s kind of the next level that you need, but 100% that was an easy comp.”

Stafford earned only his third Pro Bowl honor this season and could be bound for his first AP All-Pro award.

“It’s great,” Stafford said of the Pro Bowl recognition. “It’s a great honor to get. Fans are involved, players are involved, coaches … whoever’s involved is involved. I appreciate it. I play this game to try to play at a high level and get respect from the people that you do it with and play against. That part of it is really cool.”

At 37, Stafford has led the Rams (11-4) to one of the best records in the NFL as he enjoys perhaps his most productive season. He is only one touchdown pass away from matching his career high set in 2011 with Detroit and matched with the Rams in 2021.

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AP freelance writer Dan Greenspan contributed to this report.

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