A decision we knew was on its way ever since the offseason began has finally been made official: Tua Tagovailoa is the starting quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons when they face off against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 1, per the team’s announcement.
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Since a partially torn ACL ended Michael Penix Jr’s 2025 campaign last November, his return had been a question mark for the season opener. While he did take some practice reps throughout training camp, he wasn’t cleared for full-contact practice and team periods until two weeks ago. With their Week 1 clash against the Steelers’ defense just six days away now, there clearly wasn’t enough time for Penix to get back to 100%.
Tua, meanwhile, took the majority of first-team reps, and even suited up for first and final preseason games. For his collective effort across those two matchups, he went 10-of-13 for 117 yards. While those snaps never amounted to a touchdown, they didn’t result in turnovers, either – which had been one of the biggest concerns surrounding Tua last season with the Miami Dolphins, aside from the questions about his durability. Still, the team saw something well enough in him to give him the job.
“I think the biggest thing that you can tell is he’s a veteran,” offensive coordinator Tommy Rees had said about Tua during training camp. “He can see the field really well, and if the defense makes a mistake, he can see that and exploit it.”
Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski dragged his feet on this decision for as long as he could, letting the QB competition play out even after the final 53-man roster was decided. Now, this may have been just to see if Penix Jr. could get back to game shape in time. But with no time to waste, the job finally went to Tua. Interestingly, this marks the sixth time a different quarterback will start Week 1 for the Falcons in six consecutive seasons.
Now, Penix is still the presumed quarterback of the future, and the Falcons have just named Tua the starter for Week 1. If Penix gets enough full-contact reps with the ones to prove he can get back on the field, the job will likely go back to him – especially if Tua’s struggles with turnovers from last season spill over to his new team. The 15 picks and 30 sacks from last season do paint a worrying picture, but Tua also has all the tools he could need to succeed in keeping this starting job longer.
Through the preseason games, Tua has already shown he can make connections with tight end Kyle Pitts. Add RB Bijan Robinson and WR Drake London, and this offense does look like it can make good plays. But if Tua gets injured or struggles in the regular season, the Falcons’ 4QB plan starts to look like the best thing they could have done this offseason.
Veteran QB Cooper Rush and UDFA Jack Strand won a game in the preseason and could get more looks if the Falcons feel like discovering their options at quarterback for the future. It does look like Michael Penix Jr. will get his starting role back sometime this season, but for now, this is Tua Tagovailoa’s show, and he has a lot to prove.