FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The Atlanta Falcons have named Tua Tagovailoa the starting quarterback for their Week 1 matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Tagovailoa, who signed with the team this offseason, worked with the starting offense during full-team periods for most of training camp. He also started the Falcons' first and final preseason games. He completed 10 of his 13 pass attempts for 117 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions and had a passer rating of 103.7.
"I think the biggest thing that you can tell is he's a veteran," Falcons offensive coordinator Tommy Rees said of Tagovailoa during training camp. "He can see the field really well, and if the defense makes a mistake, he can see that and exploit it."
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Tagovailoa will once again operate in an offense filled with unique playmakers. The former Dolphins quarterback has been at his best when he can decisively distribute the ball quickly and put it in a spot that sets his teammates up to gain yards after the catch. In Bijan Robinson, Tagovailoa has a dynamic runner who can turn a checkdown into a touchdown and has developed as a receiver each season. In Drake London, he's got a fearless downfield acrobat and versatile No. 1 wide receiver with the size to win in any matchup. In Kyle Pitts, he's got a tight end with elite size for the position who moves in ways unlike anybody with his frame should.
Atlanta rounded out its complement of skill players for its quarterbacks this offseason, adding Jahan Dotson, Olamide Zaccheaus and Brian Robinson Jr. in free agency. The Falcons also added another yards-after-catch weapon at receiver in the draft, selecting Zachariah Branch out of the University of Georgia in the third round.
"You know that certain players, once they have the ball in their hands, a lot of the time the first guy they're going to make miss," Tagovailoa said during camp. "And we'll see how it goes from there. But those kind of [run-after-catch] guys, that's the guys you want to be able to get the ball to any which way you can."
This announcement comes after the Falcons were one of four teams across the league to carry four quarterbacks on the initial 53-man rosters last week. The Steelers, who the Falcons will face on Sunday, were another.
General manager Ian Cunningham said Wednesday the organization did so because Tua Tagovailoa, Michael Penix Jr., Cooper Rush and Jack Strand were "four guys who went out there and earned it." In his three preseason games, Rush was 30-of-48 for 254 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Strand, an undrafted rookie from Minnesota State Moorhead, completed 24 of his 36 pass attempts in the preseason for 306 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
"These guys have been productive during the preseason," Cunningham said. "So, if you let a guy like Cooper go, there's a potential 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. The way he played, like we talk about all the time: draft, retain, develop. In his case, he was undrafted, but there's a chance that somebody could've claimed him. It's about living in the now but also living in the future with Jack. So, that kind of went into the quarterback process."
Cunningham also noted that this decision acts as "a little bit of an insurance policy" because neither Tagovailoa nor Penix were healthy enough at the start of training camp to be full-go in 11-on-11 work.
Penix injured his knee in the third quarter of a Week 11 game against the Carolina Panthers last season. He was placed on injured reserve the following day and had season-ending surgery to repair his partially torn ACL shortly thereafter. Penix compiled a 3-6 record as a starter during the 2025 season. He completed 60.1% of his passes for 1,982 yards with 9 touchdowns and 3 interceptions.
Tagovailoa entered camp with some minor back tightness, but he was back at full capacity in relatively short order. Throughout their camp quarterback competition, the Falcons' coaching staff divided work according to what each player could do. Penix received the majority of 7-on-7 reps while he was unable to compete in 11-on-11 periods, and Tagovailoa took the lion's share of full-team work.
All quarterbacks participated in individual position activities, including footwork drills, dropbacks from under center and throwing to the receivers against air. This work was crucial early during offseason team activities to commit dropping back from under center to muscle memory, something that is expected to be a core part of Atlanta's offensive design.
Tagovailoa has started 76 games during his six-year NFL career, all of which occurred with the Dolphins. This will be the first start the former fifth-overall pick makes for another organization, and he'll be at the helm of a different offensive scheme. The 28-year-old quarterback is two seasons removed from leading the NFL in passing yards. His 4,624 yards in 2023 helped him make the Pro Bowl and showed what he can do in a full season of work. It also built off an impressive 2022 season in which Tagovailoa led the league in numerous categories, including passer rating and yards per attempt.
"You want to prove people wrong," Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski said of Tagovailoa. "You have a chip on your shoulder. I think where I'm coming into this, where Tua's coming into this is, listen, this is not exactly how you thought it would go, but guess what, that's the reality, and how are we gonna respond? I think that's what he's made of. You look at his career, you look back at his college career, he's responded."
Week 1 is officially here, and the Falcons have their starting quarterback as they begin preparing for the Steelers. When the game kicks off and Atlanta's starting offense takes the field, Tagovailoa will be out there with them.
