FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons were one of four teams to carry four quarterbacks on their initial 53-man roster, and the competition to name a starter continues.
As Week 1 nears, Falcons coaches continue to evaluate the four players: Michael Penix Jr., Tua Tagovailoa, Cooper Rush and Jack Strand.
"The more reps, the more evaluations we can get, the better, right," Falcons general manager Cunningham said. "Just like we discussed, that's the hand that we were dealt with. So, the more opportunities that we can get to evaluate, the better it is."
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The Falcons began training camp with undrafted rookie Jack Strand taking starting snaps by necessity as both Tagovailoa and Penix were unavailable due to injury. Rush was signed on the first day of camp, and he progressed throughout the summer as he got more comfortable with the offense.
Given the various injury timelines the Falcons worked through in training camp, the coaching staff developed individual plans to effectively analyze and prepare each quarterback. The week leading up to the third and final preseason game, Penix returned to full-team work, making it the first time all four players were healthy at the same time.
Cunningham explained Atlanta's decision to keep four quarterbacks on the roster and continue the competition came down to a combination of injury insurance and the high level of preseason play from Rush and Strand.
"To see Coop and Jack continuously to get better throughout, while Tua and Mike were getting healthy. Coming in with that, thinking, alright, there's some injury risk with those guys, trying to protect against that," Cunningham said. "There's a little bit of an insurance policy, but there's also these guys who have been productive during the preseason.
"And so, if you let a guy like Cooper go, there's a potential that he may be able to get an opportunity to go to another team. If you let a guy like Jack Strand go, he's subject to waivers. And the way he played. We talk about all the time draft, develop, retain—in his case, he was undrafted, but to develop. There's a chance that somebody could have claimed him. I think it's about living in the now but also living in the future with Jack. So that kind of went into the four-quarterback thought process."
Although Penix did not play in any preseason games and logged three practices of full-team work, the coaching staff has been pleased with his work throughout the offseason and in training camp.
While focused on his recovery after last season's knee injury, Penix participated in individual quarterback drills, 1-on-1s, 7-on-7s and 7-on-9 periods. In addition to the limited on-field work he was doing, the coaches have also praised Penix for his work in meetings and learning a new playbook.
"I think he's more than eager to get out there and practice, and he's done a great job," Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski said the Monday before Atlanta's final preseason game. "I've mentioned this many times to you guys, I think there's ways to get ready to prepare and improve. You'd love to get every rep as any player at any position. Oftentimes that's just not possible. There's so many things you can do to prepare yourself, whether it's in a walkthrough or getting a mental rep or what have you. So, he's done an outstanding job in that regard."
With 11 days remaining until the Falcons' season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers—another of the teams to keep four quarterbacks on their initial 53-man roster—the quarterback competition in Atlanta continues.
The key difference now is that all parties are fully healthy, giving the coaching staff their cleanest look yet at all four players.
Check out the best photos from the final tune up in Flowery Branch, ramping up to the 2026-2027 Season.
