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Michael Penix Jr. #9 of the Atlanta Falcons runs through drills alongside Tua Tagovailoa #1 as head coach Kevin Stefanski

The Falcons ‘ quarterback situation has continued to evolve in recent years, with Atlanta now looking to establish its starting quarterback after the failure of the Kirk Cousins experiment.

And it will come down between former Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and returning Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr.

While Penix has more experience in Atlanta after being selected by the team at eighth overall in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, it doesn’t look like he’ll be taking the reins at the beginning of the season.

At least for now. Marc Raimondi of ESPN recently reported that Tagovailoa may be the lead dog in this race, and all of the indications certainly lean toward Tagovailoa.

Tua Tagovailoa Appears To Have The Edge Over Michael Penix Jr. In Race For QB1

Based on some cryptic comments and the comparison and contrast between the two signal-callers’ respective bodies of work, Tagovailoa appears to be more than favored here.

Raimondi referenced comments from head coach Kevin Stefanksi in support of his hypothesis, noting a trait Stefanski has put emphasis on, that, well, is hardly possessed by Penix.

“Tagovailoa has been able to do everything, and Stefanski is on record saying he believes accuracy is the most important trait for a quarterback, something Tagovailoa historically has had in abundance,” Raimondi wrote.

“None of this means Tagovailoa will for sure win the job, especially if Penix impresses in training camp. But Tagovailoa might have something of a head start in this new offense.”

How Tua Tagovailoa May Hold The Edge Over Michael Penix Jr. In Falcons QB Battle

Tagovailoa and Penix bring two very different skillsets to the table from both a tangibles and an intangibles perspective — and looking at all things as a whole, it looks like Tagovailoa is not only the better of the two quarterbacks, he’s also best suited for the Falcons’ current situation.

Tagovailoa is leaps and bounds stronger than Penix as a pure passer, and with a Falcons corps of wide receivers that is headlined by the likes of Drake London and Zachariah Branch, in addition to do-it-all running back Bijan Robinson sometimes contributing to the passing game, Tagovailoa has his fair share of talented pass-catchers to throw to.

The Falcons’ ever-improving offensive line also provides the pass protection a quarterback needs, ranking exactly in the middle of the pack as a unit at 16th overall for the 2025 season. That being said, Tagovailoa has shown he can still produce strong numbers through the air even in a bad situation.

That is the perfect illustration of what the Dolphins’ O-line had in 2025, coming in as the league’s nearly worst unit, 29th overall. Ouch. Even in the midst of that, though, Tagovailoa delivered. The Alabama product posted a 64.1% completion rate, which is his worst of his career. That’s not exactly a surprise given just how poor the protection was, but it’s worth noting that the completion mark is plenty satisfactory for any quarterback, including those playing in favorable conditions.

Penix, despite having played less games, is far behind Tagovailoa both from a numbers and film perspective, holding a 58.1% completion in 2024 and 60.1% in 2025.

It will be interesting to see how this duel at quarterback continues in Atlanta, but it seems the writing is already on the wall for one of these players… and it’s not Tagovailoa.