Falcons de facto starting QB Tua Tagovailoa left Thursday's practice after appearing to hurt his back, an injury that could jeopardize his status for Sunday's opening game at Pittsburgh.
Update: It's an oblique injury, but we don't yet know more about whether it'll affect the QB's Week 1 availability.
The Falcons have named QB Tua Tagovailoa their Week 1 starter against the Steelers, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. Tagovailoa entered the summer as a heavy favorite for the starting job while QB Michael Penix worked back from his ACL tear. But a rough August nearly cost him the job.
Falcons QB Tua Tagovailoa has struggled so badly in training camp that Michael Penix has a chance to win the Week 1 starting job, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Rapoport said Atlanta planned to start Tagovailoa while Penix worked back from his knee injury, but Tua's play has made that "impossible."
After being cleared to practice four days ago, Falcons HC Kevin Stefanski told reporters that Michael Penix Jr. won't play in the final preseason game, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Tua Tagovailoa will be the starting QB on Friday, as three practices are too soon for Penix Jr. to return to game action.
The Falcons opened camp without Michael Penix Jr, who was still recovering from the torn ACL he suffered in Week 11 last season. Now head coach Kevin Stefanski says Penix Jr is cleared for 11-on-11 work and will practice Monday, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
In a battle between Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr., the Falcons have yet to name their starting QB. But ESPN’s Marc Raimondi reports that they plan to have Tagovailoa be their starter for the initial preseason game on Friday.
The Falcons opened training camp yesterday without their top two QBs in Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. Tagovailoa had been dealing with back tightness, but he's back at practice today. Tagovailoa opened the day doing individual drills, so the back tightness doesn't appear to be a major issue. Penix and Tagovailoa are currently competing to open the season as the starter.
Falcons QBs Michael Penix and Tua Tagovailoa are sidelined for the start of training camp. Penix continues to recover from November surgery to repair his right ACL. Tagovailoa is dealing with a tight back, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter, and is expected back next week.
Falcons QB Michael Penix is throwing at the team's OTA sessions this week. He's working back from November 25 surgery to repair what was reported as a partial tear of his left ACL.
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.
NFL Network reports that the Falcons are expected to sign QB Tua Tagovailoa to a league-minimum deal. Any agreement can't officially be made until the Dolphins' release of the veteran processes later this week.
The Dolphins announced that they will release QB Tua Tagovailoa at the start of the new league year this week. The move will cost Miami an NFL-record $99 million in dead money, split over this season and next. The Fins are hitting the 'reset' button under new GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and HC Jeff Hafley, cutting Tagovailoa and WR Tyreek Hill, among others, this offseason.
Miami has chosen Jeff Hafley to be the next head coach, according to multiple reports. Hafley spent the past two years as Green Bay's defensive coordinator after four as Boston College HC. His previous NFL experience included:
It seemed immediately after Week 18 that Miami would proceed with HC Mike McDaniel in place. But that changed Thursday when the team fired him. That move follows the in-season ouster of GM Chris Grier. McDaniel spent the past four years at the Dolphins helm after one year as 49ers OC and four others as run-game coordinator.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Miami Dolphins have benched QB Tua Tagovailoa and will start seventh-round rookie Quinn Ewers against the Bengals. The news doesn't come as a shock, following Miami's Monday night loss to Pittsburgh that officially eliminated the Dolphins from playoff contention. HC Mike McDaniel opened the door for the move after the game, saying the QB play wasn't good enough and "everything is on the table."
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa completed 20 of 26 passes for 205 yards and 4 TDs in Sunday's surprising win over Atlanta. Miami's 34 points set a season high.
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