FLOWERY BRANCH — The Falcons have “not yet” decided their starting quarterback for their Week 1 bout with the Pittsburgh Steelers, general manager Ian Cunningham told reporters Wednesday in a news conference.
“Ultimately, when the coaches are ready, when the players are ready, we’ll make that decision,” Cunningham said.
The final call will be a group decision between Cunningham, coach Kevin Stefanski and president of football Matt Ryan. Cunningham declined to say whether the competition is solely between Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr., who have taken the first-team reps all offseason, or if veteran Cooper Rush and undrafted rookie Jack Strand are still in contention.
“We’re evaluating all the quarterbacks,” Cunningham said. “Mike’s coming back. He just got back in 11–on-11. Tua has been here. He came in a little bit banged up, so he started a little bit behind. Cooper comes in, he wasn’t anywhere during OTA, so he comes in and he’s starting to get his feet going and Jack showed up.
“So again, you’re evaluating all the quarterbacks.”
The Falcons scheduled practice for Monday through Thursday this week, which serves as Penix’s second week back in full team periods. Part of the reason the team is waiting, Cunningham said, is to increase its sample size.
“The more reps, the more evaluations we can get, the better,” Cunningham said. “That’s the hand we were dealt. So, the more opportunities that we can to evaluate, the better it is.”
The Falcons begin the season at 1 p.m. Sept. 13 against the Steelers at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh.
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