The Atlanta Falcons seem to have found their starting quarterback.
It isn’t Tua Tagovailoa.
Michael Penix Jr. has come back from his knee injury to lead the Falcons first to a convincing Thursday Night Football win over the Green Bay Packers in Week 3 and then to a dominant Monday Night Football win over the New Orleans Saints in Week 4.
Penix will get the chance to complete the trifecta in Week 5 when the Falcons take on the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday Night Football.
Meanwhile, all Tagovailoa can do is watch his fellow lefty shine while Tua just stands on the sideline.
Tagovailoa was brought to Atlanta to potentially compete for the starting job, and he was even lined up to start Week 1 before a terribly timed oblique injury in the Thursday practice before the Sunday game.
Now, it’s getting harder to see Tagovailoa making it through the season with the Falcons.
Tua Tagovailoa Trade Rumors
The trade rumors are only going to heat up the more Penix performs like this.
It isn’t a sure thing that Tagovailoa would make other teams better, but Atlanta only gets so much value out of him standing on the sideline. If a team made them a solid offer, the Falcons would have to consider it.
Of course, trading Tagovailoa means downgrading at the QB2 spot behind a quarterback in Penix who has had three torn ACLs since his college career began. Penix is a higher injury risk than some quarterbacks, and so maybe keeping a solid backup — who also throws left-handed for ease of operation — is the way to go.
But when Penix was efficiently handling the Saints defense on Monday night, there was already chatter going around about a Tua trade.
Tua Tagovailoa Trade Landing Spots
One destination popped up from some smart football minds at The Ringer: the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Chargers have struggled this season, including franchise QB Justin Herbert, but they have a first-year offensive coordinator there, Mike McDaniel.
McDaniel was Tua’s head coach in Miami, and maybe that connection would be a good thing.
Bring in the guy who could make this offense work. The Chargers should trade for Tua.
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— The Ringer (@ringer) October 6, 2026
Of course, by the end in Miami, things weren’t as good for Tagovailoa or McDaniel or the offense as a whole. It wouldn’t be a perfect solution.
But it will start to feel more and more like something has to give in Atlanta when it comes to Tagovailoa. It probably doesn’t help him to spend a whole season on the sideline, but the Falcons have no reason to play him right now.
Even if he isn’t the QB he once was, his name still brings a lot of attention. If Tagovailoa gets traded, it’ll be a notable move, whether it really matters or not.
Falcons’ Tua Tagovailoa Trade Rumors Take Turn