The Atlanta Falcons appear to have settled on a quarterback plan for the rest of the 2026 season. Despite Michael Penix Jr. fighting it out with Tua Tagovailoa at the beginning of camp, Penix has the starting job all but locked in after Tagovailoa embarrassed himself in Week 5.
According to Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey, who discussed the Falcons' overtime loss to their purple-and-black-clad foes from the AFC on Sunday Night Football, safety Kyle Hamilton screamed "Tua [is] in the game!" when Penix had to come out. Humphrey said that Tagovailoa's entry into the game was the "most excited" he has seen Hamilton.
Not soon after Tua trotted onto the field, Atlanta lost on the back of a game-ending interception that went right to Hamilton. When opposing players are so thrilled to see Tagovailoa enter the game that they are one step shy of openly laughing at the Falcons, that could be a sign that moving forward with Tua is not an option this team can consider.
Ravens players were thrilled to see the Atlanta Falcons forced to play Tua Tagovailoa
Penix is far from a perfect quarterback, but he can do a solid job of operating Kevin Stefanski's offense from the pocket when kept clean. He is still deplorable under pressure, likely due to his injuries sapping his mobility, but his ability to distribute the ball to Drake London and Kyle Pitts while letting Bijan Robinson cook is exactly what this team needs.
It's easy to forget that Tagovailoa was scheduled to be the Week 1 starter while Penix worked his way back from injury before the also-fragile Alabama southpaw went down with an oblique problem that forced Cooper Rush into the starting lineup. Tagovailoa has lost his starting job, and it doesn't seem like the team is in any rush to get him back on the field.
The Atlanta Falcons need to consider ending the Tua Tagovailoa experiment
In theory, Stefanski's offense should be great for Tagovailoa. The former No. 5 pick is at his best when he can quickly get the ball out and use his superior anticipation to hit timing routes. However, his fatal flaws as a player are getting too noticable, and Penix doesn't have as many warts on him right now.
Tagovailoa not only is seeing his already subpar arm strength stary to disappear, but he has two big issues for backup quarterback work. Not only can he be turnover-prone, but he is also brittle in his own right. That makes him too uneven to trust in a reserve role, especially behind someone with Penix's alarming injury history.
Even if Penix plays well enough to stave off Matt Ryan possibly taking a quarterback in the first round of the 2027 NFL Draft, it should not surprise anyone if the Falcons use a mid-round pick on someone with higher upside than Tagovailoa. The league outside of Atlanta views him as a punchline.
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