Michael Penix: Everything you need to know

The Falcons shared a video Tuesday showing Penix (knee - ACL) throwing to Drake London during spring offseason workouts, Marc Raimondi of ESPN reports. Penix is six months into his recovery from a partially torn left ACL suffered in mid-November of the 2025 season, his third such injury in the last eight years, so his participation in throwing drills is an encouraging sign. Atlanta has confirmed that the third-year QB is taking part in Phase 2 of the offseason program, which includes individual and group work but not yet 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 team drills. Beyond continuing his rehab and meeting the expected trajectory of Year 3 development, Penix also faces the challenge of learning new head coach Kevin Stefanski's offense while competing for the starting job with fellow southpaw Tua Tagovailoa, who signed a one-year, $1.3 million deal with Atlanta this offseason. Penix has offered optimism that he will be ready for Week 1, though the Falcons haven't provided an official timetable for his recovery.

Falcons GM Ian Cunningham confirmed Friday that the team is bringing in Tua Tagovailoa to compete with Penix (knee) for the starting quarterback role, Marc Raimondi of ESPN.com reports. Tagovailoa has agreed to a one-year, $1.3 million contract with the Falcons and will join the team if he passes his physical. Both Penix and Tua are left-handed quarterbacks who have dealt with numerous injuries. Penix underwent surgery in November to repair a partially torn ACL in his left knee, but he's aiming to be healthy ahead of Week 1. Once healthy, Penix is slated to compete with Tagovailoa for the starting job.

Penix (knee) won't necessarily be Atlanta's starting quarterback once he's healthy, as new addition Tua Tagovailoa will get a real chance to earn the role, Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network reports. It looks like a good situation for Tagovailoa to rehab his value while Penix rehabs from the third ACL tear of his football career. Both are left-handed, theoretically making things easier for new head coach Kevin Stefanski, after his predecessors in Atlanta went back-and-forth between Penix and the right-handed Kirk Cousins for two years. That was hardly the only issue with Atlanta's passing game, as neither QB played particularly well, and WR depth was among the worst in the league. The Falcons are now signing WRs Jahan Dotson and Olamide Zaccheaus to replace Darnell Mooney, but it'll be a while before Penix throws passes to his new teammates. Tagovailoa figures to handle first-team reps throughout the offseason program and into training camp, at the very least. Beyond that, a lot will depend on health, with both lefties sporting poor track records for availability.