Atlanta Falcons fans hoping that the media is wrong about their team's awful quarterback situation got a grim reality check in Friday night's preseason loss to the Denver Broncos.
At the top Tua Tagovailoa had a very short and ineffective evening, including a dropped snap on his second rep ever with the team. Career backup Cooper Rush came in next and he played about as poorly as it gets at this level, having several passes deflected and two picked off on his way to a 6.8 passer rating.
Undrafted rookie Jack Strand was better (6-for-12, 50 passing yards, 1 rushing TD) but clearly still needs work. This week the Falcons won't be playing Tagovailoa, as head coach Kevin Stefanski told reporters that the joint practices with the Indianapolis Coltswill serve as the game reps for his starters.
With Michael Penix still not cleared for 11-on-11s, we will see either Rush or Strand start on Friday night in Indy. Stefanski is in no rush to name one, though.
Stefanski doesn't know if Rush or Strand will start Friday at QB. #Falcons
— Marc Raimondi (@marcraimondi) August 17, 2026
Most likely Stefanski still hasn't made his decision, which is understandable given what we saw last week.
Strand would likely benefit most from getting the start against the Colts since he's still developing and at least showed some potential in the preseason opener.
The Falcons' front office led by former league MVP quarterback Matt Ryan would have been well within their rights to cut Rush and sign another quarterback, but they have elected not to - at least so far.
Whoever starts should have a decent opportunity to show what they can do. Only the Dallas Cowboys allowed more passing yards than the Colts last season.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Falcons won't name starting QB for preseason game vs. Colts