Tua Tagovailoa, Michael Penix Jr. to Have Open Competition for QB1 Job, Falcons' GM Says

The starting quarterback position for the Atlanta Falcons is officially up for grabs.

"[Tua Tagovailoa] knows he's coming in to compete," general manager Ian Cunningham told reporters Friday. "Like Michael [Penix Jr.] knows he's coming in to compete."

Cunningham essentially confirmed what has already been reported following Atlanta's decision to bring in Tagovailoa this offseason.

"From my understanding, once Michael Penix is healthy, this will be an open competition for the starting job," NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe reported Tuesday. "They prioritized signing Tua, in part, because they wanted competition for Michael Penix. They wanted a little bit more urgency out of him. To be able to give him a little kick in the butt in the competition department."

There are a number of factors involved in this quarterback competition, not the least of which is Penix's health. After all, he suffered a torn ACL last season and will need to be fully cleared before he has a realistic chance at beating out Tagovailoa for the starting role.

That would seemingly give Tagovailoa a better chance, but the Falcons have also invested far more in Penix.

Atlanta selected him with the No. 8 overall pick of the 2024 NFL draft and surely envisioned him as the long-term franchise quarterback at the time. Tagovailoa, on the other hand, joined the fold this offseason on a short-term deal of one year and $1.3 million, per Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports.

It is the Miami Dolphins that are feeling more of a financial hit when it comes to Tagovailoa, a Spotrac explained:

Neither quarterback has much on-field momentum entering this competition for the starting job.

Injuries have been a concern for Tagovailoa the last two seasons since he was a Pro Bowler in 2023, and he went 6-8 with 15 interceptions during the 2025 campaign. Penix was just 3-6 as a starter last season, though, and has not secured his spot as the long-term starter to this point despite his draft status.

Regardless of who wins the job, there will be no shortage of talent on the field in an offense with Bijan Robinson, Drake London, Kyle Pitts and others.

Whichever quarterback simply gets the ball into his playmakers' hands while minimizing mistakes will have an excellent chance of being the starter.