Eleven days before the Falcons' opener, the team still hasn't named a starting quarterback. GM Ian Cunningham spoke Wednesday, and the only update he gave: selecting the starter will be a group effort. He wouldn't name a front-runner. He gave no timeline.
“When the coaches are ready, when the players are ready, we will make that decision,” Cunningham said, via SI.com. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the final call belongs to Cunningham, head coach Kevin Stefanski and president of football Matt Ryan. That's an unusual committee for a job that usually has an answer by now.
The roster explains the patience. The contenders are Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa. Behind them, per NBC Sports, the team has Strand and Rush as insurance, which matters because the other two have injury histories. That setup is fine in July. In September, it's a red flag.
The fantasy impact is straightforward. You don't want Penix in your lineup if he might not play. You don't want Tagovailoa either, because the franchise won't commit to him. So treat both as bench material for Week 1 and avoid the Falcons' passing game in DFS. The uncertainty alone kills the stack's upside.
My read: this is a coin flip, and the Falcons are overthinking it. The veteran, Tagovailoa, is the safer bet to take the September 13 snap, but the committee setup tells you he has a short leash. If you're drafting this week, don't be the one to pay for indecision. Let someone else start a Falcon.