Falcons' preseason opener helped to decide QB battle (but not the one you think)

While the Atlanta Falcons' quarterback battle has taken all of the shine, the competition for the QB3 job is still ongoing. But there's another key difference here: Tua Tagovailoa played in the preseason opener while the injured Michael Penix Jr. didn't, but both Cooper Rush and Jack Strand saw the field on Friday night.

If you thought Tagovailoa stunk it up in his Falcons debut, the signal-callers who played after him had another thing coming. While Atlanta got decimated 27-7 by the Denver Broncos in front of their home fans, it started to make the competition a lot clearer when it looked super murky in training camp.

After Tua's exit, Rush was the first quarterback to come in--and he was a total disaster. He completed just seven of his 19 pass attempts (36.8%) for 62 passing yards and threw two interceptions, including a tipped pass in the red-zone that Denver's Jahdae Barron ran back for a 97-yard pick-six.

Jack Strand is firmly pulling away in the Atlanta Falcons' QB3 competition

Every single drive Rush started ended in either a punt or an interception. It's crazy because his pick-six wasn't even his worst throw of the night. His first interception as a Falcon came courtesy of Riley Moss because he threw the ball completely behind Dylan Drummond. He was woefully unprepared after signing with the team on the first day of camp and only having weeks to learn the playbook.

Meanwhile, Strand had a much better day. He led the Dirty Birds to their only rushing touchdown of the evening, punching it in himself for a one-yard rushing score. But he also completed six of his 12 pass attempts for 50 yards, which is a much more respectable stat line. There's a reason the fanbase loves him.

Jack Strand is an undrafted rookie who had no NFL or D1 experience to his name before this week. Cooper Rush is now a 10-year NFL veteran. It speaks volumes that the former had a better performance in his NFL debut than a guy who has been a backup since Strand was in middle school.

Here's the other thing we have to consider: Rush was working with the second-team offense while Strand was working with the third-stringers. One guy was throwing to Drummond, Chris Blair, and Zachariah Branch, while the other's top targets were Vinny Anthony II, Joshua Simon, and Nick Muse.

Kevin Stefanski likely only gave Cooper Rush the second-team reps due to the rookie treatment, but if his performance in Atlanta's preseason opener is any indication, Jack Strand's bid for the QB3 job is much stronger now.

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