Michael Penix Jr. Facing Uphill Battle To Win Falcons QB1 Job?

The Falcons added QB Tua Tagovailoa on a veteran minimum contract this offseason as Michael Penix Jr. rehabs from a partially torn ACL.

It was previously reported the Falcons plan to have an open competition between Penix and Tagovailoa when Penix is healthy, but that isn’t likely to be until later in the summer at the earliest after Tagovailoa gets the most of the offseason as QB1.

Per Jason La Canfora, team’s around the league believe Atlanta pursued Tagovailoa to install him as a starter this offseason so they can “slow-play” Penix’s return.

Canfora thinks “the deck is going to be stacked in [Tagovailoa’s] favor” because the former Dolphin is going to get every opportunity this offseason to be the starter, and the odds he plays poorly enough for Penix to get his chance are pretty slim.

Overall, Canfora doesn’t see there being much of a QB competition in Atlanta unless Tagovailoa is to get injured at some point, which has been a significant part of his career to this point.

Penix, 25, transferred from Indiana to Washington for the 2022 season, after spending four seasons at Indiana. The Falcons used the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 draft on Penix. 

Penix is in the second year of his four-year, $22,384,370 contract that included a $13,099,542 signing bonus. The contract includes a fifth-year option for the team to pick up in 2028.

In 2025, Penix appeared in nine games for the Falcons and completed 60.1 percent of his pass attempts for 1,982 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions.

We’ll have more on the Falcons’ QB situation as the news is available.