ESPN Calls Falcons Addition of Tagovailoa a Head-Scratcher

The Atlanta Falcons signed quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to a one-year deal worth the veteran minimum of $1.3 million last week. Tagovailoa was brought in on an inexpensive contract to compete with Michael Penix Jr. for the starting job in 2026.

Following the first week of NFL free agency, ESPN’s staff debated the best moves and the most puzzling moves made across the league. One writer tabbed Atlanta’s decision to sign Tagovailoa as a “head-scratcher.”

ESPN fantasy football writer Liz Loza was the culprit.

“But it’s far from a flex,” Loza wrote regarding the Falcons' signing of Tagovailoa. “Though the Falcons’ investment in Tagovailoa is relatively low (one-year, $1.3 million deal), it’s far from inspiring as a move.”

However, Atlanta did not sign Tagovailoa to be its next franchise quarterback. The move wasn’t meant to inspire or serve as a “flex.” The Falcons simply needed another quarterback on the roster.

Penix is currently rehabbing from a partially torn ACL suffered in Week 11 and may not be ready for the start of the season. Veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins was released last week. As it stood, Atlanta only had one quarterback on the roster and needed another option under center.

Given the circumstances, the Falcons signed Tagovailoa to the cheapest deal possible to add depth at the position. Loza herself acknowledged that Atlata’s roster situation made adding another quarterback necessary.

“Given Michael Penix Jr.'s ACL injury and Kirk Cousins' release, adding Tagovailoa made sense for the Falcons,” she wrote.

If the move even makes sense to her, it raises the question of why she labeled it the most head-scratching decision of free agency thus far. Tagovailoa isn’t guaranteed to start, and there is genuinely no “flexing” involved; the signing was simply about adding competition and depth.

Atlanta’s front office made that point clear last week. General manager Ian Cunningham emphasized that both quarterbacks will have to compete to earn the starting spot.

“We’re not in the business of really handing out starting positions in February, and in March the same,” Cunningham said. “For Tua, coming in here, he knows he’s coming in to compete, just like Michael knows that he’s coming in to compete.”

Atlanta needed to add another quarterback to the roster and signed one of the cheapest options available. In reality, it was a straightforward depth move, not the kind of decision that typically qualifies as one of the league’s most puzzling.