You have to keep your expectations realistic when your team's third-string quarterback is starting. Unfortunately for the Atlanta Falcons and their fans, they had little choice but to do so even though it was only the first game on their 2026 schedule.
With Michael Penix Jr. still getting up to speed at practice and Tua Tagovailoa ailing from an oblique injury, the Falcons started veteran backup Cooper Rush - who's only been with the team about six weeks after getting signed at the outset of training camp.
That means Rush didn't have much time to get into a rhythm with any of his new receivers, and that definitely showed in Sunday's road loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The only beneficiary was Bijan Robinson, and for much of the game he was the team's
only option in the passing game as well as their top rusher. At the end Robinson had totaled 10 targets, while nobody else had more than four. He finished the afternoon with nearly 100 more yards than the rest of the team combined.
Rush's arm is clearly far past its prime, as he struggled to throw the ball further than five yards down the field accurately. Every time he took off from the pocket it became an adventure, including a gruesome interception in the second quarter to Jaquan Brisker on a bad overthrow intended for Jahan Dotson. Rush threw another INT in the fourth quarter when T.J. Watt broke through and made a leaping pick. Rush also had multiple passes batted down at the line of scrimmage by Cameron Heyward and he never got into a rhythm with anybody but Robinson.
In the end, Rush finished with a dismal line of 12/22 for 143 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions and a 51.9 passer rating.
All together, it was a very underwhelming performance. If the Falcons face a similar situation going into next week's game against Carolina we'd much rather see undrafted rookie Jack Strand get the ball.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Cooper Rush flops in debut for Falcons against Steelers
