By admin 
The Atlanta Falcons were handed an interesting wrinkle in their quarterback competition as training camp opened up.
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Atlanta signed former Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to a one-year deal after he was released by Miami this offseason. Tagovailoa was set to compete with Michael Penix Jr. for the starting job.
Despite Atlanta drafting Penix eighth overall in 2024, he’s dealt with injuries in his NFL career and isn’t cleared. Making matters worse, as training camp opened, the Falcons announced Tagovailoa is sidelined with what the team considers a “flare-up” of an undisclosed injury.
With Tagovailoa and Penix both out with injuries, the Falcons signed former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Cooper Rush to add to the quarterback room.
The quarterback battle is wide open, and it could very well come down to health, given that both Tagovailoa and Penix are sidelined to begin training camp, and neither can take the first step to winning the job.
“I have a long injury history,” Penix said after Wednesday’s practice. “The last thing I want to do is rush back just to get back on the field. … This is the third ACL [injury]. We’re not taking it lightly.”
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Penix said it could take four weeks or potentially earlier for him to be cleared for a full practice, while head coach Kevin Stefanski said he isn’t sure when the quarterback will be ready.
Meanwhile, although the Falcons’ signing Rush seems minor, he has started 16 games in his NFL career and went 4-1 as the Cowboys’ starter in 2021 while Dak Prescott was injured.
So, if Penix and Tagovailoa are both out for a bit, Rush could seemingly come in and win the job. However, it appears to me the Falcons are leaning towards Tagovailoa winning the gig.
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Tua Tagovailoa Ready for ‘Reset’ With Falcons
Miami selected Tagovailoa fifth overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, and early on, he looked like a franchise quarterback.
However, due to injuries and some poor play as of late, the Dolphins opted to release him. Once he signed with the Falcons, he said it was a good chance to reset and prove he’s a starting quarterback again.
“Based off of what happened last year, I knew I needed to play better, but I think this is a great opportunity to be able to come here and get a good reset,” Tagovailoa said to AtlantaFalcons.com. “I want to thank the Blank family. I want to thank Arthur (Blank). I want to thank Coach (Kevin) Stefanski. I want to thank the organization for allowing me this opportunity. I am excited.”
Tagovailoa, meanwhile, believes the competition with Penix is a good thing even though neither is available to begin training camp.
“If there’s no competition, I don’t think anyone’s getting better, in aspect of the field of work you’re in,” Tagovailoa added. “I am excited to be able to compete against [Penix], to compete with him, to be able to get to know my teammates on a personal level, knowing them from the outside in.
“We have a lot of good football players on this team, so I’m excited to get to play with these guys and get the chance to throw the ball around, conversate with them. I think it’s going to be great.”
The hope is that Tagovailoa can return from his minor injury soon and win the starting quarterback job. But, as training camp opens, the Falcons’ quarterback competition got an interesting wrinkle with the addition of Rush.
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This story was originally published July 30, 2026 at 7:12 AM.