The Atlanta Falcons have been embroiled in a whirlwind game of "guess the quarterback" for the past five days since the team's opening-week loss at the Pittsburgh Steelers. Cooper Rush suffered a back injury in Week 1, and many believed that he could end up being unavailable for Week 2's matchup against the Carolina Panthers. In that scenario, fourth-stringer and rookie UDFA Jack Strand's number would have been called to command the offense.
All of this was contingent on both Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa not being available. While Tagovailoa did not practice on Thursday, Penix Jr. was a full participant on both Wednesday and Thursday, fueling speculation that he could make his long-awaited return from a partially torn ACL suffered back in mid-November of last season. However, Ian Rapoport reported on Friday that Rush is taking first team reps, and is expected to be the starter against the Panthers on Sunday.
"Falcons QB Cooper Rush is taking the first-team reps now and is expected to start Week 2, sources say. No surprise, with Michael Penix Jr not quite ready." Rapoport posted on X. Subsequently, the Falcons' official X account confirmed that head coach Kevin Stefanski announced that Rush will start for a second consecutive week.
"Coach Stefanski confirms Cooper Rush will be the starting QB on Sunday", the Falcons X account posted. Although having Rush available is good news for the Falcons, any non-Penix Jr./Tagovailoa option was always going to land Atlanta as underdogs this coming weekend against Carolina. Rush ended the season opener with a 51.9 passer rating, whilst Strand has never played a snap of regular season offensive football in the NFL.
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