The Atlanta Falcons solved one of their major problems this morning by signing former Pro Bowl edge rusher Za'Darius Smith. However, they still have a hell of a hole at the quarterback position.
Atlanta's preseason debut against the Denver Broncos went pretty poorly in just about every department, especially quarterback. Tua Tagovailoa bombed in his brief action and Cooper Rush was even worse. The only half-decent performance the Falcons got at the position was from undrafted rookie Jack Strand, who was facing the absolute bottom of the Broncos' defensive roster.
Head coach Kevin Stefanski liked what he saw from Strand in his NFL debut. Here's what he had to say about it, per Josh Kendall at The Athletic.
“Always room for improvement, but proud of him for his first time out there... It’s a testament to him and what he was able to do early in camp when he was the one guy standing there. Like any rookie, (there’s) so much to work on. And that’s the fun part of working with our rookies. Jack’s got a great attitude. Love how he is in the meeting rooms, love how he is on the grass.”
Strand went 6/12 for 50 yards, no touchdowns, no interceptions, one sack and a 61.1 passer rating. That's generally not the kind of performance that gets you a pat on the back from your head coach, but it was by far the best that the Falcons got on Friday night.
Strand at least pushed the ball down the field and was able to avoid committing any turnovers. Meanwhile, Rush had two and Tagovailoa was lucky to avoid one as he dropped his second snap for a fumble.
If there was a big winner coming out of that game it was Michael Penix, who still hasn't been cleared for 11-on-11 work, but has a wide-open opportunity to win the QB1 given the way things are going. Right now, Atlanta's best path seems to be putting Penix on top of the depth chart as soon as he's healthy, followed by Tagovailoa, then Strand serving as the No. 3 option.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Kevin Stefanski comments on rookie QB Jack Strand's NFL debut