Michael Penix Expected to Recover from ACL Injury “At Some Point” During Training Camp

By Shane Hallam | Updated on Sun, Mar 29 2026 12:27 AM UTC

The Falcons expect QB Michael Penix Jr. to be ready at some point during training camp, according to NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe. Penix aggravated a bone bruise and knee sprain and sustained damage to his ACL in Week 11's loss to the Panthers on November 16th. A recovery for training camp would place him back in action about eight months after the injury.

What They're Saying

Cameron Wolfe, NFL Network: “Open Falcons QB competition this summer! Tua Tagovailoa has a head start under new HC Kevin Stefanski & real chance to earn QB1 spot over Michael Penix Jr. if he can bounce back to 2022-24 play."

2026 Fantasy Football Impact

Wolfe snuck in the injury timeline while discussing the Falcons' starting QB battle between Tua Tagovailoa and Penix under new HC Kevin Stefanski.

Penix will need a quick recovery to get up to speed and show the new coaching staff that he should win the job. Wolfe commented that Tagovailoa has the head start due to Penix’s injury, and that could put Tagovailoa in position to win the starting gig.

Penix has only completed 59.6% of his passes so far in his NFL career with 12 TDs and 6 INTs. Despite some flashes of downfield excellence, Penix struggled to consistently challenge defenses through the air in 2024 or 2025.

Tagovailoa certainly had his problems under HC Mike McDaniel in Miami, but he did flash back in 2023, throwing for 4,624 yards with 29 TDs and 14 INTs.

We should learn more about the QB battle when training camp opens in July.

Other Winners & Losers

The QB competition will be crucial for top fantasy producers like RB Bijan Robinson, TE Kyle Pitts, and WR Drake London. Though Robinson will be less dependent on the QB, a better offense will mean more scoring opportunities.

Pitts and London will be reliant on an elevated passing game to match (or even surpass) their 2025 production.

Shane Hallam, Writer

Shane has over 20 years of experience creating content and playing every fantasy football format, including redraft, dynasty, devy, C2C, IDP, CFF, and more. He is a multi-year winner of $500 dynasty leagues on the FFPC and a King's Classic Champion. Shane utilizes deep film and scheme study to enhance his fantasy performance. He led the industry in 2024 preseason Kicker Rankings and ranked second in preseason QB Rankings. He also ranked eighth in preseason IDP rankings.