By Dustin Brown, Co-Founder and Podcaster of the Fantasy Football Healers
May 29, 2026
The Atlanta Falcons team has been spiraling since Matt “Matty Ice” Ryan was traded to the Indianapolis Colts in 2023. The clock had run out for the veteran, former MVP Matty Ice in Atlanta. It was time for the Falcons to find their next starting quarterback. The starting quarterbacks for the Falcons in 2023 were Desmond Ridder, Taylor Heinicke as direct back-up, and Logan Woodside as emergency option. That year, Ridder would start 13 games with 2,836 yards, 12TDs, 12INT. Heinicke appeared in 5 games, throwing for 890 yards, 5 TDs and 4INT. The Falcons would finish 3rd in their division in 2023 with a 7-10 record. Although a losing record, the Falcons remained only 2 games out of first in the division in 2023. The Buccaneers and Saints both with 9-8 records.
In 2024, the Falcons learned that the team required a leader of men. They needed a starting quarterback and they needed one bad. The Falcons believed that they were just a quarterback away from winning their division in 2023. In March 2024, the Falcons signed Kirk Cousins to a monster 4 year deal worth up to $180 million! Kirk Cousins’ contract had expired with the Minnesota Vikings following the 2023 season. A season where Kirk Cousins appeared to be leading the Vikings to a Division Title and possibly a deep run in the playoffs. Unfortunately for Kirk and the Vikings, their season was derailed by a Kirk Cousins right Achilles tear while playing against the Green Bay Packers on October 29, 2023.
Following the signing of Kirk Cousins, it had appeared that the Falcons had found their signal caller or did they…
Just a month after signing Kirk Cousins to a massive deal, the Falcons surprised the NFL by drafting Michael Penix Jr 8th overall in the 2024 draft. Michael Penix Jr had been coming off a historic run with the Washington Huskies in 2023. He finished as the Heisman Trophy runner-up after leading the FBS with 4,903 passing yards while guiding his team to a 14-0 undefeated regular season record and a berth to the CFP National Championship game. Although Michigan would go on to win the Championship game in 2023, Penix would be drafted a couple picks earlier than his rival JJ McCarthy of Michigan at pick 10.
The Falcons had high hopes for the 2024 NFL season however the Falcons fell short of expectations. They would finish the season with an 8-9 record, placing 2nd in the NFC South and missing the playoffs. The offense would average only 22.9 points per game in 2024. Kirk Cousins started for the Falcons and threw for 3,508 yards, 18 TDs, and 16 INT. In week 5, Kirk Cousins threw for a franchise record 509 yards against the Buccaneers but it wasn’t enough to get the Falcons team on track to win the division. It was time to see what the rookie Michael Penix Jr had in him. In the final game in 2024 against the Carolina Panthers, Penix started and threw for 312 yards, 2 TDs, 1INT and a rushing score. Providing a spark that the Falcons could use going into the 2025 season.
April 2025, the Falcons surprised the league again. The Falcons made a trade with the LA Rams. The Falcons sent their 2026 first round pick (13th overall pick “Ty Simpson, QB”), 2025 2nd round pick (No. 46 “Terrance Ferguson, TE”), 2025 7th round pick (No. 242 “Konata Mumpfield, WR”) for the rights to draft James Pearce Jr, Edge at pick 26 overall and a 2025 3rd round pick (No. 101 which was later traded to the Eagles in a trade up for Xavier Watts, safety at pick No. 96). According to nfldraftbuzz.com, Pearce has profiled as an immediate impact pass-rush specialist with the ceiling to develop into a 3-down defender. He was projected to be a high ceiling defender due to his elite athletic traits and SEC proven production. James Pearce Jr was ranked in the Top-5 of Defensive End prospects in a deep class of the 2025 class.
The Falcons wheels continued to spin in 2025, but they were not alone. The Falcons would finish the year with an 8-9 record, tying the Buccaneers and the NFC South Division winning Panthers. The Falcons had to split QB duties with Michael Penix Jr. and Kirk Cousins due to a catastrophic partially torn left ACL injury to Michael Penix Jr requiring season ending surgery in Mid-November 2025. He suffered the injury in week 11 against the eventual division winners, Panthers. What makes this injury even more significant is that Michael Penix Jr. had prior histories of ACL tears to his right knee in 2018 and 2020. Penix would start 9 games and end up throwing for 1,982 yards, 9 TDs, and 3 INT with a 60.1% completion percentage.
Kirk Cousins would play in 10 games while passing for 1,721 yards, 10Tds, and 5 INT with a 61.7% completion percentage. The Falcons continued to have quarterback woes and had a big decision to make for the 2026 season.
The 2025 season was not all bad. James Pearce Jr would be named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the month (Dec & Jan) and he would end up compiling 10.5 sacks (leading the Falcons in 2025 while recording the most sacks by an NFL rookie since 2021). Pearce achieved 45 QB pressures, a franchise rookie record.He would also be the first rookie in franchise history to record a sack in 6 consecutive games. Not too shabby! Unfortunately for the ascending defensive end, James Pearce Jr would later be arrested in February 2026 from an incident involving his ex-girlfriend, WNBA player Rickea Jackson. He had charges of battery with a deadly weapon, aggravated stalking, fleeing the police, and resisting an officer with violence. The resisted arrest offense was dropped. He is currently under the diversion program which requires Pearce to seek therapy and maintain no contact with Jackson for a year. If Pearce complies with terms, the charges will be dropped in 2027. The Falcons and James Pearce Jr appear to have dodged a nail in the coffin for the 2026 NFL Season.
The time was up for Kirk Cousins in March 2026, just 2 years into his massive 4 year deal. With Michael Penix Jr. on the mend from a season ending left ACL tear and no longer having a 2026 1st round pick due to trading the pick away for James Pearce Jr in 2025, who would be the starting signal caller for the Atlanta Falcons in 2026? Just 2 days after releasing Kirk Cousins, the Falcons were desperate for a starting quarterback. They signed the recently released Tua Tagovailoa to a league minimum and team friendly contract of 1 year for $1.3 million as the Dolphins are paying the bulk of his salary. Tua is currently competing with Michael Penix Jr for the starting role. Tua appears to have a leg up on the competition “no pun intended” as Michael Penix Jr will require on average 9-12 months of recovery following ACL surgery in Nov 2025, leading to a return date range of Sept-Nov 2026. The Falcons are looking for their first winning record since 2017 in a competitively weak division. Will they find their way out of the Bermuda Triangle or continue the course of mediocre play and quarterback purgatory for the 2026 season?
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