Michael Penix Jr. Takes Big Step in Knee Injury Rehab amid Falcons QB1 Battle with Tua

Atlanta Falcons quarterback and potential starter Michael Penix Jr. has taken a step forward in his recovery from knee surgery.

Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski said Saturday Penix has been cleared for 11-on-11 practice.

When asked how the Falcons planned to ramp Penix up to game speed, Stefanski said, "He'll practice Monday in team periods."

Penix has previously been limited to quarterback drills and seven-on-seven practice while rehabbing from the torn ACL he suffered last November.

Stefanski has yet to announce whether Penix or Tua Tagovailoa will be starting when the Falcons kick off the regular season Sept. 13 at the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Penix tore his left ACL while playing against the Carolina Panthers on Nov. 16 and underwent surgery later that month.

That marked the third ACL repair surgery for Penix, who recovered from two torn right ACLs while playing for Indiana.

Penix told reporters last week recovery from his latest injury was not just a physical but also a mental process of learning to trust his knee again.

"If something bad happened to you, and you remember every step that took up to that place that something bad happened to you, the next time you're going to do it, you're going to think about it again... it's like, okay, yes, I am healthy, but do I trust that?" Penix said last week.

Getting Penix back on the field for full team drills could be key to the team naming a QB1, which Stefanski declined to do when announcing Tagovailoa would start the team's preseason opener.

Tagovailoa played two drives in that preseason opener and did not see action in the Falcons' Saturday matchup as Cooper Rush and Jack Strand played against the Indianapolis Colts.

Quarterbacks coach Alex Van Pelt said last week he felt Penix had "done everything he could possibly do to put himself in position to compete" for the QB1 position despite missing out on full team drills.

"We'll reset and kind of take a look at it from the big picture once he's available," Van Pelt said about the quarterback competition.

Depending on how Penix's participation in practice goes this week, the Falcons could potentially have all four of their quarterbacks available when wrapping up the preseason Friday against Tagovalioa's former teammates on the Miami Dolphins.