The Atlanta Falcons continue to have Tua Tagovailoa on their roster.
But the lefty quarterback, formerly of the Miami Dolphins, continues to not play.
It’s Week 5 of the 2026 NFL season, and Tagovailoa still hasn’t made his Falcons debut.
Instead, he’s been watching from the sideline as the Falcons started 0-2 and have now won their last two games.
At this point, it’s not clear what might come next for Tagovailoa. Rumored trades are on the table, too.
This is his first year away from the Dolphins, and it’s not going well for Tua.
Why Isn’t Tua Tagovailoa Playing?
Tagovailoa isn’t playing for two reasons: Injuries and the depth chart.
The Falcons planned to have Tua start Week 1. Michael Penix Jr. wasn’t available yet as he recovered from his knee surgery, and Tagovailoa was going to get the start on Sunday of Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
That Thursday, though, Tagovailoa went down in practice. It turned out that he had hurt his oblique.
That injury kept Tagovailoa inactive in Weeks 1 and 2. In the meantime, Cooper Rush had to start those two games, and the Falcons’ offense looked hapless.
By the time Tagovailoa was ready to be active, the Falcons also had Penix back from injury.
The third-year QB Penix has been great and efficient in his first two games back, and so that has meant the Falcons don’t even have to think about Tagovailoa playing.
If Penix stays healthy, it’s hard to imagine Tua will play this season at all in Atlanta.
That does at least raise the possibility of a trade.
Tua Tagovailoa Trade Rumors
There was a suggestion earlier this month that the Falcons could trade Tagovailoa to the Los Angeles Chargers. There, Tua would be reunited with Mike McDaniel, who was his head coach in Miami but is now the offensive coordinator with the Chargers.
That would make some sense, besides the fact that the Chargers already have Justin Herbert as their starting QB.
And given how the Chargers are playing so far this season, they have bigger problems than considering a trade for a different backup quarterback.
As the NFL trade deadline gets closer, there’ll be other speculation about Tagovailoa being a trade candidate.
He could’ve been moved already, but the New York Giants traded for J.J. McCarthy when Jaxson Dart’s season ended due to injury, not for Tagovailoa.
Could another injury give Tua a chance somewhere? At this point, without an injury in Atlanta or somewhere else in the league, he’ll be stuck on the sideline.
Why Tua Tagovailoa Isn’t Playing for Falcons Amid Trade Rumors