Report: Michael Penix Jr. will not play in Falcons final preseason game
According to Tori McElhaney, Michael Penix Jr. will not play in the Falcons final preseason contest on Friday against the Dolphins. Tua Tagovailoa will start, with Cooper Rush and Jack Strand coming in afterwards. Michael Penix Jr. will not play in Friday's preseason game against the Miami Dolphins. Tua Tagovailoa will start. Cooper Rush and […]
According to Tori McElhaney, Michael Penix Jr. will not play in the Falcons final preseason contest on Friday against the Dolphins.
Tua Tagovailoa will start, with Cooper Rush and Jack Strand coming in afterwards.
Michael Penix Jr. will not play in Friday's preseason game against the Miami Dolphins.
Tua Tagovailoa will start. Cooper Rush and Jack Strand to come in after.
— Tori McElhaney (@tori_mcelhaney) August 26, 2026
For fans hoping Penix will be the Falcons’ starting quarterback come Week 1 — which is pretty much everyone who cares about this team — it isn’t a great sign, even if it’s not all that surprising.
Penix was just cleared for 11-on-11 work, with his first full practice coming Monday. Expecting him to be game ready this soon was probably wishful thinking, but I wouldn’t count him out of the race to start against the Steelers just yet.
A lot will depend on how Tua looks Friday. He was dreadful in the Falcons’ first preseason game, and the reports coming out of practice have been equally discouraging. If he doesn’t show up with a little more pep in his step for the final preseason contest, Penix could win the job by default.
That’s not something you want to hear this close to the start of the season, but it’s the state of the Falcons quarterback competition right now.
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Photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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