Good morning, Falcoholics, and welcome to the very first edition of the Falcons Opening Drive, in which I share the latest news and updates about the Atlanta Falcons, as well as my take on everything surrounding the team based on my time covering them in Flowery Branch, and this week, at joint practices against the Indianapolis Colts in Indianapolis, Ind.
Below, I share my thoughts on what we’ll learn about the 2026 Falcons during those joint practices, some Falcons coverage from around the beat you
don’t want to miss, a compelling case for optimism from one of our fellow Falcoholics, and don’t miss the Question of the Day all the way at the end. Share your answer to today’s question — if you could ask Stefanski or any other member of the coaching staff anything today, what would you ask and why? — in the comments.
Falcons Opening Drive: What to expect from Falcons-Colts Joint practices
This coming week will be the first time I’ve covered a Falcons joint practice anywhere but Flowery Branch, and I’m actually pretty excited.
As far as destinations go, Indianapolis may not sound exciting, but my mom has a list of chores for me at my childhood home in Ohio, Indy is just a little over three hours from there, it’s an easy drive back from Indianapolis back to Georgia (plus I get to go to my favorite restaurant in Nashville en route), and most importantly: I think we’re going to learn a whole lot about how Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski and Co. are thinking about the current roster and Atlanta’s eventual starting lineup.
These practices should give us a view into the status of the depth chart (the unofficial one released prior to the first preseason game was put together by the media relations team, not the coaching staff), the status of position battles, and whether some of the lapses and gaffes we saw on Friday night against the Broncos should be attributed to general preseason weirdness or legitimate concerns.
Stefanski said at the beginning of training camp that he does generally believe in giving starters some preseason playing time.
“… I think for guys to get ready to play football they have to play football,” Stefanski said early in camp, way back on July 31.
So we saw some starter action with a few exceptions on Friday, and we’ll see the starters take the field in the third preseason matchup, too, in Miami on Aug. 28. But the second preseason game against Indianapolis will be a backup extravaganza, and according to Stefanski, we’ll see the starters get a lot of run against the Colts on Aug. 19 and 20th.
The Falcons haven’t named a starter for Week 1, and everything Penix, his teammates, and Stefanski have had to say about it is that they’re pleased with the progress and believe he’ll be fully ready to play soon. But soon won’t be this week in Indiana, because he will be limited to individual drills, 1-on-1s, and 7-on-7s, Stefanski told the media last Wednesday.
After Friday’s disaster of a game, here’s what I’m going to be focused on during Falcons-Colts joint practices:
Tua Tagovailoa and Jack Strand, especially in 11-on-11s
Tagovailoa played two series against the Broncos, and I pretty much hated every second of both of them. To echo what Tua said postgame, via Marc Raimondi at ESPN, I was also “frustrated and disappointed at the way things happened” on Friday, and I’m hoping to see significantly improved play from him against the Colts.
With Strand, he wasn’t perfect, but he was extremely fun, and he definitely had his moments, like the only touchdown Atlanta scored against the Broncos.
You’ll notice I didn’t mention Cooper Rush — and all I have to say there is, bless his heart. He finished his snaps on Friday with a quarterback rating of 6.8. Six. Point. Eight.
That’s my least favorite aspect of the preseason: I hate seeing talented, nice guys probably play themselves right out of a chance at a roster spot. But the preseason isn’t over, and who knows? Perhaps the change of scenery in Indy will be good for Rush, and he’ll tear it up in joint practices. I’d love to be pleasantly surprised.
Speaking of, I’m curious how much we’ll see of Anthony Richardson this week in joint practices, but he did not have a great outing this week against the Patriots.
The RT situation
Rookie Ethan Onianwa has looked good in camp, but did not look ready for the big time against the Broncos, and Michael Jerrell didn’t look better. Jawaan Taylor has been cleared to return to practice, but the team’s not rushing him back into full-speed practice, so Onianwa and Jerrell have a chance to redeem themselves.
No fighting, and no injuries
I believe this is my 16th training camp as a writer here at The Falcoholic, and my 12th as credentialed media. I have seen a lot of training camp fights with varying degrees of seriousness, and my professional opinion is: It’s not worth the risk of injury, and it’s not worth the potential fine or discipline. And obviously I want everyone on both teams to stay fully healthy. We’ve already seen too many injuries in Atlanta, and across the league, this summer, and I don’t want to see any more.
Now, on to the Falcons coverage you absolutely need to read, watch, or listen to today.
- Get to know UDFA QB Jack Strand on and off the field: I loved this insightful piece on UDFA Jack Strand, who might be the most interesting man on the team from the talented Daniel Flick of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. (gift article)
- The Falcons’ QB competition is far from over, but Michael Penix Jr. is running out of time: Maybe something will drastically change between early Monday morning and Wednesday, but it really sounds like Stefanski does not expect Penix to be ready for full contact in joint practices — and three weeks seems like not enough time to get fully prepared to start in the season opener, writes Josh Kendall of The Athletic. ($)
- Stefanski’s postgame presser: D. Orlando Ledbetter, the longtime Falcons beat writer who recently retired from the AJC after a distinguished and decorated career, has struck out on his own at BowtieSports.com. He’s got the transcript of Stefanski’s postgame comments, which begin with, “Plenty to clean up.” Check out what Stefanski said about Friday night’s penalties (all NINE of them), too. That’s another thing I’ll be keeping an eye on in Indy.
- Leadership in Action: Based on what I observed during his time in Atlanta, it’s my opinion that Kirk Cousins was disappointingly standoffish with Penix. It made me sad for Penix, who seems like a smart, hardworking, thoughtful, and extremely genuine young player. He could have really benefited from Cousins’ veteran leadership. I didn’t see that happen. I think this moment below from Friday night’s game says a lot about both Tua’s and MPJ’s character, and I love it.
From The Falcoholic community
Neff43 makes a solid case for optimism despite Friday night’s embarrassing loss. Do you agree?
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The Falcoholic’s question of the day:
If you could ask Stefanski or any other member of the coaching staff one single solitary question today, what would it be, and why? What answer would you hope for, and what answer do you think you’d actually get? Share in the comments.
I’ll be back on Wednesday morning with a look back at Monday’s practice and what it means for Falcons-Colts joint practices.
