Former Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has officially won the Atlanta Falcons‘ quarterback competition.
The Falcons announced Monday that Tagovailoa will be their starting quarterback when Atlanta opens the 2026 NFL season against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.
The decision ends a months-long competition between Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr., giving the former Alabama star another opportunity to establish himself as an NFL starter.
For Tagovailoa, the announcement marks an important next chapter in a career with plenty of highs and lows since he left Tuscaloosa.
Tua Tagovailoa Named Atlanta Falcons Starting QB
Atlanta signed Tagovailoa to a one-year, $1.3 million contract during the offseason after the Miami Dolphins released him in March.
The Dolphins took on a massive $99.2 million dead-cap charge as part of the decision to move on from the six-year veteran.
Now, Tagovailoa has a chance to revive his career with the Falcons.
The competition with Penix was expected to be one of the more interesting quarterback battles of Atlanta’s offseason. Penix entered the competition after suffering a torn ACL in November 2025 and undergoing surgery.
He wasn’t cleared for 11-on-11 work until the final week of training camp, allowing Tagovailoa to establish himself as the more ready option entering Week 1.
That opportunity ultimately paid off.
Former Alabama Star Gets Another NFL Opportunity
Injuries have complicated Tagovailoa’s NFL career, but there have also been stretches when the former Alabama standout has played at an extremely high level.
He led the NFL with 4,624 passing yards in 2023 and followed that by leading the league in completion percentage at 72.9% in 2024.
Those numbers demonstrate why Tagovailoa remains an intriguing quarterback when healthy and playing with confidence.
However, the former first-round pick struggled during the 2025 season, throwing 15 interceptions while continuing to deal with durability concerns.
Through six NFL seasons, Tagovailoa has completed 68% of his passes for 18,166 yards, 120 touchdowns and 59 interceptions.
Now he’ll have the opportunity to add another chapter to those numbers.
Tua’s Preseason Didn’t Tell the Whole Story
Tagovailoa’s preseason performance wasn’t exactly dominant.
He appeared in two preseason games for Atlanta. In his first appearance against Denver, he played just nine snaps.
His second preseason outing came against his former team, the Miami Dolphins, and Tagovailoa completed 7 of 8 passes for 95 yards.
There were some concerns, however.
Tagovailoa fumbled a snap in both preseason appearances and struggled at times to consistently push the football downfield. Similar concerns surfaced during Falcons training camp.
Despite those issues, Atlanta ultimately decided Tagovailoa gave the team its best option to begin the season.
Now comes the part that matters most.
The former Alabama quarterback will have a chance to prove that he can still be the quarterback who once looked like one of the NFL’s most efficient passers.
Alabama Fans Will Be Watching
Tagovailoa remains one of the most important quarterbacks in recent Alabama football history.
He took over as the Crimson Tide’s starter during the 2018 season and immediately became a star, famously throwing the game-winning touchdown pass to DeVonta Smith in overtime of the national championship game against Georgia.
His time in Tuscaloosa helped establish him as one of the nation’s premier quarterback prospects and eventually made him the No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Now, more than six years later, Tagovailoa enters another pivotal season.
The Falcons have allowed him to start.
What he does with it could determine whether this becomes a short-term stop in Atlanta or the beginning of another successful chapter in his NFL career.
For Alabama fans, either way, Sunday’s season opener will provide another reason to tune in and watch one of the most memorable quarterbacks in Crimson Tide history.
Former Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa Named Falcons’ Starting Quarterback