The Atlanta Falcons got more bad news shortly following their fifth-straight loss of the season, with starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. landing on the injured reserve list due to a knee injury.

Things went from bad to worse when that knee injury was ruled an ACL tear that will keep him out for the season. According to a report from ESPN’s Marc Raimondi, Penix will require full ACL reconstruction despite the fact the injury is just a partial tear.

It’s a tough break for the second-year quarterback who had been playing well in the first half of Sunday’s loss to the Carolina Panthers. The Falcons released a statement Wednesday on Penix’s condition:

“After further medical evaluation, it has been determined Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. will undergo season-ending surgery for a partially torn ACL.”

Knee injuries were a recurring trend for Penix in college, but those were to his right knee and not his left knee, which is the case here.

Penix finished out the second season of his career with a 60.1 percent completion rate, passing for 1,982 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions over nine starts, showing plenty of flashes of optimism to be the team’s quarterback of the future after the ups and downs the team has had at the position.

With this, the team will look to veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins, with a newly signed Easton Stick expected to serve as the backup quarterback as the team prepares to face the New Orleans Saints on the road.

“Obviously, it hurts your heart when your quarterback goes down,” Morris said. “But you got to recenter, you got to focus. You got to go with the next-man-up mentality.

The Falcons and the Saints are set to kick off of 4:25 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 23 in Caesars Superdome.

This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Michael Penix Jr. ACL surgery: Further updates revealed