It took 2 preseason games for Jack Strand to validate a Kevin Stefanski gamble

Part of the appeal that led the Atlanta Falcons to hire Kevin Stefanski was his reputation as a QB guru. He knows how to turn water into wine under center like the best of them.

This is the same man that took the Browns to the playoffs with an aging Joe Flacco, so of course the Falcons were expecting him to solve their quarterback woes, as Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa is pretty rough. So they were expected to be key players in the QB market during the 2026 NFL Draft.

But that never happened. Atlanta's new regime opted to use their limited draft capital to address more pressing needs, but Stefanski still worked his magic with a rookie quarterback, as he struck gold in undrafted free agency with Jack Strand, a player he called his shot on weeks before the draft.

Usually it's a risk for the youngest quarterback in your QB room to be a D2 standout with not a down of high-level experience under his belt, especially when they opted not to draft someone like Drew Allar or Cade Klubnik in favor of signing him. But that decision has aged progressively well across the last couple of weeks.

Jack Strand is making Kevin Stefanski look like a true quarterback guru

The Falcons hosted Strand on a pre-draft top 30 visit in order to help Kevin Stefanski get a closer look at him. The tools were there. The arm talent, the size, the mobility, and the college production, and across two preseason games, everything you could've expected to translate to the NFL has.

The 22-year-old has been a pleasant surprise for Atlanta all offseason long, but the hype train came full steam ahead during the Dirty Birds' second preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts. The 34-6 win saw Strand play a little more than a half, and it was hard to deny who the star of the show was.

The Minnesota State-Morehead product completed 12 of 17 pass attempts for 215 yards and a touchdown--and added nine carries for 22 rushing yards and another score. But the best part about Strand's big day was seeing him connect on the deep ball with WRs Juice Wells and Beaux Collins.

For a player with such little NFL experience, Strand showed impressive command of the offense. The pocket presence was there, and so was the arm talent. If I didn't know any better I'd think he was a 10-year veteran like Cooper Rush the way he was playing--and the confidence has been cool to see.

You don't have to tell me twice. I know it's the preseason and he's facing backups, but he's certainly looking like a player validating Stefanski's risk. It would've been easy to sign a local talent like Haynes King as a developmental piece or use one of their three seventh-rounders on a QB, but Strand is playing his way into the Falcons' long-term plans this summer.

This doesn't mean that Jack Strand will eventually develop into a future star, or even a starter with the Falcons. But if Kevin Stefanski is able to develop him into a quality backup, it will give fans a glimmer of hope should Penix or Tua struggle.

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