Falcons Could Release Tua Tagovailoa on $1.21 Million Deal if Benched

Q: If Michael Penix Jr. is the ultimate future, why did the Falcons desperately keep four quarterbacks for roster insurance?

Because Atlanta does not yet trust its quarterback room to be settled, even if Michael Penix Jr. is still viewed as the long-term upside play. The Falcons’ own explanation was practical, not philosophical. Penix was recovering from knee surgery and was not cleared for full 11-on-11 work until late in camp, then was inactive for Week 1. Tua Tagovailoa also missed early camp time with back tightness and now has fresh health concerns. That left Atlanta operating for much of the summer without a stable, fully healthy starter, so general manager Ian Cunningham called carrying four quarterbacks “a little bit of an insurance policy.” There was also a roster-management reason. Cooper Rush gave them a credible veteran fallback after being signed when both Penix and Tagovailoa were limited. Jack Strand, the undrafted rookie, played well enough in the preseason that the Falcons feared losing him on waivers if they tried to stash him elsewhere. Cunningham said Rush “earned it,” and Strand’s development made the team want to “live in the future” as well as the present. So keeping four quarterbacks was less a contradiction of Penix’s long-term status than an admission that Atlanta’s short-term reality is messy. Penix may still be the future, but he was not ready to fully claim the present, Tagovailoa’s grip on the job looks fragile, and the Falcons did not want to expose either insurance option while the competition and recovery timelines remain fluid.

3 articles · Updated · NBC Sports · Sep 10

A “strong possibility” exists that Atlanta will cut Tua Tagovailoa if he loses the starting job, putting his roster spot in jeopardy as early as a benching.
Michael Penix Jr. is widely expected to take over once his surgically repaired knee is ready, and Tagovailoa’s risk rises further if he is passed not by Penix but by veteran Cooper Rush, who has 16 NFL starts.
Tagovailoa is on a one-year, $1.21 million contract that becomes guaranteed if he makes the Week 1 roster, but Atlanta’s financial exposure is limited because Miami still owes him $54 million minus his 2026 earnings elsewhere.
Sunday’s return to Acrisure Stadium carries added weight after his poor performance there last December led to a Dolphins benching and eventual release, leaving both his Falcons stint and possibly his NFL future under pressure.