All doubts about whether quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will start Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers are now over. The quarterback dealt with a back issue during training camp. Then, he suffered an oblique injury during practice on Thursday. Subsequently, the QB didn’t participate in practice on Friday. And now, just ahead of the Steelers’ matchup, the Atlanta Falcons have shared the final update on Tua’s availability.
Per reports, Tagovailoa has been ruled out of the Week 1 game against the Steelers due to his oblique injury. The writing was already on the wall. The Falcons had named Tua Tagovailoa as their Week 1 starter, yes. However, earlier reports from practice this week confirmed that the quarterback was touching his back before sitting down after a throw.
He remained to the side for the rest of the practice, per the reporters who were able to watch the Falcons’ practice this week. Tagovailoa joined the Falcons’ roster on a one-year deal ahead of the 2026 season. The quarterback is coming after a disappointing 2025 season with the Miami Dolphins, as the team eventually benched him during the final stretch of the season.
Heading into the offseason program, the Falcons admitted a quarterback competition to decide the QB1 for the season. The injuries, however, dominated most of their offseason. For broader context, Tagovailoa’s oblique injury has become a major complication for the Falcons, considering third-year quarterback Michael Penix Jr. isn’t healthy enough to start as well.
Penix Jr. went down with a knee injury during the 2025 season, which required surgery. Since then, the young signal-caller is rehabbing and is trying to get back on the field. Earlier, Penix Jr. admitted that while he’s really close to get healthy enough to start, he’s not 100% fit yet.
“I just told him (Kevin Stefanski) I’m not where I want to be right now,” said Penix. “And I want to be able to be 100% so I can help the team win football games. And I’m really close. Really close…I want to be stronger. I want to be able to be out there and give the team 100%.
“And if I don’t feel like I can do that, that’s not fair for this team. That’s not fair for this organization. I want to make sure whenever I am out there, I’m 100%, and there’s no doubt in my mind that I trust my knee and that I trust being able to go out there and help this team win football games.”
However, along with Tua Tagovailoa, Michael Penix Jr. has also been ruled out for Sunday’s matchup against Pittsburgh.
In their absence, the Falcons are all set to start with Cooper Rush. Rush backed up Lamar Jackson last year and started 2 games when Jackson suffered an injury. He finished the season with 303 yards and will now start the Falcons’ season opener.
“I’m not sure what happened, but it’s Thursday practice,” said Rush. “Practice has to go on and so you’re up next, and that was a good day. It was good to get out there and get some real reps with that group, and we’ll see what happens.”
That said, Kevin Stefanski is entering his first season as the Falcons’ head coach. While he dominated the headlines during the 2025 season because of how he mismanaged the Cleveland Browns’ quarterback room, it’s safe to say that the head coach is already off to a poor start to the season, with two of his top quarterbacks now dealing with injuries.