“Michael Penix Jr is gonna have a phenomenal NFL career”: Harry Douglas drops 2024 Draft projection for the $1.5M NIL-valued ex-Washington QB

Michael Penix Jr, whose net value is $1.5 million, had an incredible 2023 season. His dynamic and mobile style of play allowed the Washington Huskies to have an extremely strong offense all season long. These performances took the Huskies to the national championship game, where they would lose to the top-seeded Michigan Wolverines.

While Penix did not have the best performance in the CFP title game, this has not affected public opinion of him. To many, he is one of the best quarterbacks in college football at the moment and has the potential to go far in the NFL.

One person who shares this sentiment is college football analyst Harry Douglas, who discussed Penix on "The Pat McAfee Show."

“I think the young man is going to have a bright future."

Michael Penix can go far

Penix is the kind of quarterback that is synonymous with this current style of quarterback play we see from the young rising quarterback stars of the league

His ball placement is strong, allowing the ball to almost fall directly into the hands of his receivers. He is also not afraid to throw deep passes down the field, allowing his offense to quickly gain yards to find the endzone.

We saw most of these abilities during the Sugar Bowl, where the Washington Huskies faced the Texas Longhorns. Penix gave us a performance for the record books, throwing for 430 yards and two touchdowns. This performance may also show us that he can perform well in the games that matter, something that an NFL quarterback needs to be able to do. These strong performances were seen all year. Penix threw a total of 4,903 yards and 36 touchdowns during the 2023 season. Those numbers are similar and, in some cases, better than the majority of NFL quarterbacks.

But, as Penix Jr. has declared for the draft, which team may pick them? Douglas had an idea on this topic as, well:

“Look at teams like Tampa, look at the Seattle Seahawks “

Seattle Seahawks: Penix's NFL team?

The Seattle Seahawks seem a strong fit for Penix. Firstly, he is used to the climate and weather conditions in the Pacific Northwest because that is where he went to college.

Additionally, the Seahawks may be moving on from Geno Smith. While Smith has had a career revival with the Seahawks, it felt like he was only a short-term replacement for Russell Wilson, and if they had the opportunity to draft a franchise quarterback, they would. Michael Penix might be their guy.

Douglas also mentioned the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a potential team to draft him as well.

"Even though Tampa (Bay Buccaneers) is doing well right now, look at teams like Tampa."

Similar to Seattle, while they are having success with Baker Mayfield at quarterback, this doesn't seem to be a permanent fix. Drafting Penix would allow the Buccaneers to find a franchise quarterback that may allow them to dominate the NFC South, an incredibly tight division, for years to come.