The Atlanta Falcons are arguably the most-talented team in the NFC South, at least on paper – a surface where they notably don’t play football games. Still, their offensive line was already good and could become great under new assistant Bill Callahan. Their offensive skill group is loaded, their secondary is stacked, they have an athletic freak and an underrated gem at linebacker and two young weapons of mass destruction along the edge.
Add it all up and you have a team that’s on the cusp of contending for a playoff spot – all they have to do is find that elusive last piece that is a long-term successor to Matt Ryan, who last started at QB for Atlanta five years ago.
Ryan is now back with the organization as “President of Football” and taking an active role at practice. Obviously, Ryan will play a part in deciding who wins the team’s quarterback competition over the summer.
From an outside perspective, it seems like Tua Tagovailoa is the logical choice right now to start over Michael Penix Jr. – even though the team is claiming that the QB battle won’t really start until Penix is 100% recovered from last season’s ACL tear.
Either way, if Tagovailoa winds up winning the QB1 job, things could get awkward between Penix and the Falcons. Nick Shook at NFL.com laid it out in his new ranking of each division at QB, in which the NFC South came in last.
“Even before the health setback, Penix failed to demonstrate significant progress in his second pro season. Ultimately, this situation is far from settled. Penix’s timeline to return doesn’t appear to be entirely firm at this stage, and if Tagovailoa ends up playing in his place and succeeding, things could get complicated. Regardless, both players need a rebound season in 2026. We’ll see if either creates one.”
Tough but true. Penix may not have gotten much of a fair shake yet as a starter – but he also didn’t show any real progress going from his rookie season to his second. Penix has power and plenty of zip on his throws. However, he throws a lot like the way Mitchell Robinson shoots free throws – with a near-total lack of touch.
Penix has to develop his repertoire to include more than just fastballs and get more accurate in general. Until that happens, he’s either going to be an unreliable starter or a bench-warmer for the Falcons – or any other team.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Nick Shook at NFL.com sees path to drama between Falcons and Penix
