Tua Tagovailoa
Tua is in an unusual, low-security veteran-minimum deal with Atlanta, fighting to actually win the Falcons' starting job rather than being handed one.
Role
He arrived in Atlanta as the presumed Week 1 starter over 2024 first-rounder Michael Penix Jr., but reports out of camp/preseason describe the competition as unsettled rather than resolved; if he wins the job he'd be a full-time, every-down starter with normal starter-level pass volume, and if not he's the backup.
He looked sharp in the preseason outing cited (7-of-8 for 95 yards), suggesting the accuracy and rhythm-passing skills that made him a productive Dolphins starter are still there, and he was brought in specifically as the presumptive Week 1 starter.
He was released by Miami after a rough 2025 season and signed only a $1.3M veteran-minimum deal, he lost a fumble and had a stuffed run in that same preseason game, and one report frames the competition as him losing ground rather than locking down the job.
Where analysts split
Whether Tua's clean passing efficiency in preseason is enough to actually win and hold the Week 1 starting job over Michael Penix Jr., or whether the fumble and broader 2025 decline mean Atlanta ends up going a different direction at quarterback.
Injury: Questionable — assessed avoid
Oblique strain, doubtful for Week 3
Hasn't practiced since Sept 10, doubtful for Sunday, and Rush is confirmed starter; Tagovailoa is not a viable start this week and his Thursday availability next week is also uncertain.
What would change this: Whether he returns to practice this week ahead of Thursday's game vs Packers.
Research confidence: thin. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
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