Falcons rookie quarterback Michael Penix, Jr. (above) will make his first career start on Sunday against the New York Giants. Photo by One Circle Entertainment/The Atlanta Voice The Falcons offense will have a new look on Sunday with rookie quarterback Micahel Penix, Jr. scheduled to get his first career start against the Giants. The decision was made public via the Falcons social media accounts around 9 p.m. on Tuesday. In a statement about the quarterback decision, Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said, “After review we have made the decision Michael Penix, Jr. will be the Atlanta Falcons starting quarterback moving forward. This was a football decision and we are fully focused on preparing the team for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.” Atlanta Falcons receivers Drake London (right) and Darnell Mooney celebrate London’s first-quarter catch and score in Las Vegas. Photo by One Circle EntertainmentThe struggling Atlanta Falcons could not afford to lose another game and on Monday night in Las Vegas, they didn’t lose. Already a game behind rival Tampa Bay and losers of four consecutive games before playing against the Raiders, the Falcons defeated the Raiders 15-9. Up next are the New York Giants, losers of nine straight games. The Giants’ (2-12 overall) last victory came against the Seattle Seahawks on Oct. 6, more than two months ago. The Falcons defense will be up against a Giants offense that has only managed to score 21 or more points in a game three times this season. New York won two of those games, the other being against the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 22. During the game against the Raiders, Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins, the former starter, managed to throw a touchdown pass for the first time in four games. Cousins had previously thrown eight interceptions during that four-game losing streak for Atlanta. He did manage to throw another interception on the first drive of the second half, but the Falcons special teams (two field goals, two blocked punts, solid punting that pinned the Raiders deep in their own territory time after time) won the game for Atlanta.The victory brought Atlanta (7-7 overall) to within a game of the first-place Tampa Bucs (8-6 overall) with three games remaining in the regular season. Tampa is playing in Dallas on Sunday night. And for Atlanta, a home game against one of the worst teams in the league. The odds are in the Falcons’ favor with the Giants having gone 0-3 against the NFC South this season. The numbers also favor Atlanta in the chance that they end the regular season with the same record as Tampa. The Falcons own the tiebreaker after sweeping Tampa this season.  The Atlanta Falcons and Bijan Robinson (7) cannot afford to lose any more games this season, including a meeting with the New York Giants at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday. Photo by One Circle Entertainment/The Atlanta VoiceThe post Sunday Showdown: Penix, Jr. to start must-win game against NY Giants  appeared first on The Atlanta Voice.