Falcons Coach Reveals Plan for Michael Penix Jr., Tua Tagovailoa
The Atlanta Falcons have undergone a lot of changes since their last game played in the 2025 regular season.
Veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins was released, and he signed a one-year deal with the Las Vegas Raiders. Ian Cunningham is the Falcons' new GM, and former QB Matt Ryan is in a new front office role with the franchise, called the "President of Football."
Raheem Morris was fired as head coach, and former Cleveland Browns coach Kevin Stefanski was quickly hired as the new man in charge in Atlanta.
Former Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa signed a one-year deal to begin a new chapter in his NFL career.
That means Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr., both left-handers, will battle it out for the QB1 job.
Stefanski has to figure out how to split snaps between them this summer, but the Falcons coach revealed he has a plan.
"I think it's our job, I think [offensive coordinator] Tommy Rees does an outstanding job of making sure that we're intentional about how we want this to operate," Stefanski said, via Kevin Patra of NFL.com.
"One guy will be up first one period and then switch with the next period and rotate every single day in really almost every drill – because the truth is we're trying to get the best version of all of our players, so we want to mix and match guys in different spots."
Stefanski was asked how he plans to split up the snaps, and he said
"very intentionally."
So, it seems both players will get a fair shot to emerge as the starter by the time the season kicks off in September.
Who Will Win the Falcons QB1 Job?
Right now, it's tough to predict.
Penix is recovering from a torn ACL he suffered in Week 11, and Stefanski added that Penix's main focus is getting healthy.
"His main focus is getting healthy, and he's doing that," Stefanski said, via Kevin Patra. "With that, he's able to do more and more football at the direction of our medical staff, so we've been working hand in hand with what that looks like. So, you'll see Mike out there in individual, you'll see him in the 7-on-7s. He is not doing team periods yet, but that time is coming."
Still, when Penix is healthy, Stefanski seems ready to give both signal-callers a fair chance. And, this competition will likely go all the way through the preseason games before the Falcons' coach makes a decision.
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