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Tua Tagovailoa 'frustrated and disappointed' by subpar first Falcons preseason performance

Tua Tagovailoa expressed frustration and disappointment after a subpar first preseason performance with the Atlanta Falcons.

First seen Aug 16, 2026 · 5:03 PM UTC · last updated Aug 17 2:35 PM

Scoring Zone's Take

Treat this one as a modest but real yellow flag for your draft board rather than a reason to panic. The reporting says Tua Tagovailoa struggled and voiced real frustration in his first outing with Atlanta, which matters for two reasons heading into draft season: it suggests QB reps and rhythm-building are still very much in progress, and it puts him squarely in a competitive picture with Michael Penix Jr. and Cooper Rush on the same roster. A shaky preseason debut alone shouldn't tank Tua's overall talent evaluation, but it does add uncertainty to exactly who leads this offense out of the gate and how quickly touch/timing issues get ironed out — both of which matter for weekly ceiling projections you're building now.

For draft prep purposes, keep Tua as a mid-tier QB stash rather than a locked-in starter target until you see a cleaner performance or clearer word on the pecking order. Michael Penix Jr. is the name to monitor most closely; if the preseason struggles continue, he becomes a more relevant late-round dart throw or stash candidate in dynasty/keeper formats. Cooper Rush remains third-string insurance with no standalone value unless the depth chart shifts further. Kevin Stefanski's inclusion here is more about context than direct fantasy signal — no specific scheme or usage detail was reported that changes anyone's outlook.

Confidence on the fantasy read here is moderate; the sources themselves only confirm frustration and a poor outing, not a QB change or depth-chart decision, so avoid overreacting in redraft rankings. Revisit once more preseason data or explicit QB1 confirmation surfaces.

Tua Tagovailoa 'frustrated and disappointed' by subpar first Falcons preseason performance

Last impressions of Tua Tagovailoa with the Miami Dolphins were hardly sensational.

The quarterback’s first impression taking the field for the Atlanta Falcons wasn’t something he was thrilled with, either.

"Frustrated and disappointed at the way things happened [Friday] as we went out there," Tagovailoa said, via ESPN’s Marc Raimondi, after Atlanta’s 27-7 preseason loss to the Denver Broncos.

Tagovailoa played just two series, completing three of five attempts for 22 yards with a 70.4 passer rating before giving way to veteran backup Cooper Rush, who threw a pair of interceptions as Denver sprinted out to the game’s first 24 points.

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Standard August caveats apply: it was just the preseason and it was a limited sample size.

Still, the No. 5 overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft is in a competition that hasn’t exactly kicked off against the 2024 No. 8 overall pick, Michael Penix Jr. With Penix still on the comeback trail from a blown knee last season, any hopes of Tagovailoa getting a head start fell flat right about the time he fumbled a shotgun snap on the Falcons’ second offensive play from scrimmage.

"I'm competing," Tagovailoa said. "I'm wanting to go out there for points on the board, not go out there and we'll go three-and-out, three-and-out -- not be able to perform to the level that I know I'm able to do. So always looking at everything as a competition, but just got to be better."

Tagovailoa recovered the ball, but not any kind of positive narrative he was trying to put forth.

Each of the drives he quarterbacked ended with punts and just one first down among them.

"Just thinking about it, what we put out there is not a reflection of the hard work that we've put in the first two weeks into training camp, and it does no justice for the work that our coaches, as well, have implemented," Tagovailoa said. "So it starts with me. I got to be better with that. I thought off of that [second] play, [things] kind of got out of the rhythm."

Tagovailoa's -- and the Falcons’ -- new head coach, Kevin Stefanski, didn’t heap the blame onto his preseason starter. He cast a wider net for his disappointment.

"I evaluate the entire offense in that regard," Stefanski said. "So didn't move the ball well enough as an offense. Certainly, there's some things that we can clean up. We did drop a snap out there. So those are little plays that we will continue to work on. But hard to give a grade on that fewest amount of ... sample size."

Stefanski’s final season as the Cleveland Browns head coach ended at 5-12, though his squad did win its final two games.

Tagovailoa’s last start with the Dolphins after six seasons as the club’s primary starting QB was a Week 15 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. With the defeat expunging any slim Miami postseason hopes, Tagovailoa was benched for the remainder of his time with the Fins prior to his offseason release.

Friday was hardly the initial showing Tagovailoa, Stefanski or the Falcons wanted for 2026 -- preseason or not.

Coverage from Nfl Dot Com News · by Grant Gordon · Aug 16, 2026 · read original