Just 48 hours before the Atlanta Falcons' season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers, they announced that Tua Tagovailoa would miss the game with an oblique injury. Tagovailoa was named the Falcons' starting quarterback early last week but suffered the injury in practice on Thursday, forcing Cooper Rush to start Sunday. The result was a 20-13 loss on the road at Acrisure Stadium.
It wasn't all on Rush, but he didn't look great either, completing 12 of 22 passes for 143 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions. Bijan Robinson accounted for most of the Falcons' offense, finishing with 83 rushing yards on 23 carries and 90 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown on eight catches. Atlanta can't rely solely on Robinson going forward if they want any shot at success.
But it doesn't look like Rush is the answer either, leaving many to wonder what the Falcons will do heading into Week 2. Addressing the situation Monday, Kevin Stefanski refused to name a starter, saying he has "no updates" as to where Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. stand with their respective injuries. "I don’t have any updates on that today," Stefanski said.
"I need to get through today before we can really make that determination." More news: Raiders Drop Big Update on Brock Bowers Ahead of Week 2 More news: Rams HC Sean McVay Admits Costly Mistake With Myles Garrett Penix is still working his way back from a torn ACL suffered late last season, the third torn ACL of his young career. He didn't play in any preseason games and only returned to full practices toward the end of August. Had Penix been fully healed, he likely would've gotten the call in Week 1.
The team turning to Rush instead suggests he still has a ways to go before that can happen. As for Tagovailoa, his situation is far stranger. He was named the starting quarterback just days before popping up on the injury report.
Even when Stefanski named him the starter, fans pushed back against the decision. Tagovailoa looked poor in the preseason and hasn't put together a strong regular season since 2023. Oblique strains typically take one to three weeks to heal if they're minor, so there's a chance Tagovailoa will be ready to play in Week 2 against the Panthers on Sunday.
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