In the four weeks it took Michael Penix Jr. to be cleared for full contact, Tua Tagovailoa supposedly developed a major head-start in the Atlanta Falcons' quarterback battle. After all, there were some ready to call curtains on the competition (if you can even call it that) and name Tua the Week 1 starter.
But Penix has since been cleared for full contact, and took his first snaps of 11-on-11 in practice on Monday. This came at a moment where Tagovailoa's lead in the competition has started to slip with some rough practices and a performance in the preseason opener that left no one encouraged.
So on paper, Michael Penix Jr.'s return came at the perfect time for the Falcons. It'll open the QB battle right back up, but it goes much deeper than that. The newfound competition has lit a fire under Tua Tagovailoa, as he's started to turn a corner with better practices across the last couple of days.
Michael Penix Jr.'s return has been a good thing for Tua Tagovailoa
During Tuesday's practice, the 28-year-old completed 8-of-12 pass attempts in 11-on-11s, compared to 5-of-12 for Penix, though he did throw an interception to Keidron Smith. But it was still a major improvement compared to the struggles in practice we've seen recently, especially on Monday.
However, the real turning point for Tua came on Wednesday. Per the AJC's Daniel Flick, he went 8-for-9 in 11s with a long touchdown to Jahan Dotson on a go ball, and he went 4-for-5 in 7-on-7--where he added another two passing touchdowns to his stat line for one of his better sessions of camp.
Yes, most of the throws were outside of the numbers and weren't downfield shots, but Tagovailoa's calling card at this point is his accuracy. He doesn't need to have Josh Allen-like arm strength in this system, especially since playing with this personnel won't make him do more than he can handle. Besides, anything was better than what we saw out of the former Pro Bowler last week.
Here's the other wrinkle in this QB battle: the veteran is in line to draw the start in the preseason finale against the Miami Dolphins--and that revenge game will be interesting. Meanwhile, Penix isn't playing, so he can either use this as fuel to gain some favor or bury himself in the doghouse even further.
Considering all of the momentum Tua has lost in this competition, Penix's return and his return to Miami are lighting a fire under him like never before. He signed with the Falcons banking on a better situation to help turn his career around, so his redemption arc can't go off the rail before it starts.
With Michael Penix Jr. back in business, the stakes are quite simple for Tua Tagovailoa: play well and you have a shot to be QB1. If not, you'll start the year as the backup. So far he's been responding to the new challenge from Kevin Stefanski, but it remains to be seen if he will continue to do so.
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