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Penix (knee) ‘not yet ready’ for game action

Michael Penix

ATL Quarterback #9

Player Stats

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowlers reports Michael Penix (knee) is “not yet ready for live game action.”

Fowler said Penix, still recovering from his 2025 ACL injury, “wants to be fully confident before stepping onto the field. And my understanding is the Falcons are leaving the comfort level part of his recovery up to him.” “Penix is coming off his third ACL reconstruction, which is a lot of ACL reconstructions,” ESPN’s Dan Graziano added. “I believe it takes a lot of mental work to convince yourself it’s OK to go back out there and play. If Penix needs more time, I’m sure the Falcons will give it to him, though I believe we will see him on the field at some point this season.” That would leave Tua Tagovailoa as the team’s presumed starter if Tua can play through the oblique strain that sidelined him in Week 1 against the Steelers. If Tua can’t go, the Falcons could be forced to start Cooper Rush for another game or two. Rush, who had the lowest drop back EPA of any QB in Week 1, makes Drake London and Kyle Pitts iffy starts in 12-team fantasy formats.

Source: ESPN.com

More Michael Penix News

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Kyle Pitts

ATL Tight End #8

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Kyle Pitts caught all three targets for 47 yards in the Falcons’ Week 4 win over the Saints.

Pitts played just one snap on the team’s first two possessions before seeing modest usage the rest of the game. His counting stats were padded in the second half with a 28-yard, catch-and-run reception on a play action pass out of the flat. Pitts isn’t getting the snaps or route participation to return consistent fantasy production and is best left on fantasy benches for as long as Drake London remains healthy. That won’t change ahead of a Week 5 meeting with the Ravens.
Drake London

ATL Wide Receiver #5

Drake London caught 5-of-6 targets for 96 yards in the Falcons’ Week 4 win over the Saints.

London turned in his second consecutive usable fantasy week with Michael Penix under center. The low volume can primarily be attributed to just 20 Penix pass attempts in a game Bijan Robinson and Brian Robinson combined for 207 yards and five touchdowns on the ground on 33 carries. London could be tasked with more volume when the Falcons host the Ravens in Week 5, for which he will remain an unquestioned WR1 in fantasy circles.
Michael Penix

ATL Quarterback #9

Michael Penix completed 15-of-20 passes for 223 yards and one touchdown in the Falcons’ 45-24, Week 4 win over the Saints.

Penix wasn’t asked to do much with his arm as the Falcons tied a franchise record with five rushing scores, but the threat of consistent and reliable passing has done wonders for a Falcons offense that looked lost through two games behind poor quarterback play. It also doesn’t hurt when your All Pro running back goes for a 59-yard touchdown on his first touch of the game. The Falcons were never threatened by an underperforming Saints team after jumping out to a 14-point lead in the first quarter. Penix has yet to be called on for increased passing volume through two starts, something that could change, pending the health of Lamar Jackson, in Week 5 when they host the Ravens. Penix remains a middling QB2 and does not warrant starting in all formats outside of two-quarterback leagues.
Kyle Pitts

ATL Tight End #8

Kyle Pitts caught 1-of-2 targets for five yards in the Falcons’ Week 3 win over the Packers.

Pitts was the recipient of Michael Penix’s first completion of the 2026 season, with the latter making his season debut following ACL surgery. The return of his starting quarterback was not enough to give Pitts his first fantasy-relevant performance of the season as he watched blocking tight end Austin Hooper score the lone receiving touchdown of the evening from five yards out in the second quarter. Fantasy managers are stuck in the constant hype cycle with Pitts with very little to show for it through three games, making Pitts a difficult start on the road against the Saints in Week 4.
Drake London

ATL Wide Receiver #5

Drake London caught 9-of-10 targets for 194 yards in the Falcons’ Week 3 win over the Packers.

To make the stat line more impressive, London didn’t catch his first pass until three minutes into the second quarter following a 1-of-5 start from Michael Penix. He would catch his final nine targets on his way to a massive fantasy day, combining with Bijan Robinson to set the NFL record for a wide receiver and running back duo to both go over 150 yards in the same game with three such occurrences. London continues to excel with Penix under center and returns to the WR1 ranks in fantasy circles ahead of a Week 4 meeting with the Saints.
Michael Penix

ATL Quarterback #9

Michael Penix completed 18-of-25 passes for 256 yards, one touchdown, and one interception in the Falcons’ 35-14, Week 3 win over the Packers.

The final stat line looks more impressive when you consider Penix started the game 1-of-5 passing with an interception, settling into the game from there to go on to complete 17 of his final 20 pass attempts. As was the case during his rookie season, Penix leaned on his top option through the air, feeding Drake London 10 targets that the talented receiver parlayed into a gaudy 194 yards, with no other pass-catcher surpassing the 19 yards receiving of running back Bijan Robinson. The Falcons improve to 1-2 on the young season while handing the Packers their first home opener loss in 14 years. Penix has all the look of an upside QB2 and deserves streaming consideration ahead of a road matchup with the Saints in Week 4.
Tua Tagovailoa

ATL Quarterback #1

Falcons QB Tua Tagovailoa (oblique) was removed from the injury report for Week 3 against the Packers.

Tagovailoa joins a jumbled Falcons backup quarterback group for Thursday Night Football. He does not need to be rostered in 12-team leagues. The Falcons will start QB Michael Penix (knee).
Tua Tagovailoa

ATL Quarterback #1

Amazon Prime’s James Palmer reports Tua Tagovailoa (oblique) will play in Week 3 against the Packers.

Tagovailoa, fighting injuries for much of the offseason, missed Atlanta’s first two games with an oblique issue. He’ll return just in time to serve as backup to Michael Penix, who’s returning from a 2025 ACL injury. Penix is set to start Thursday night against a Packers defense allowing the ninth lowest adjusted yards per pass attempt.
Tua Tagovailoa

ATL Quarterback #1

Tua Tagovailoa (oblique) returned to practice on Tuesday.

With Michael Penix already named the starter, Tagovailoa will be aiming to back him up in Week 3’s TNF clash with the Packers. The 28-year-old veteran got in a full session on Tuesday.
Michael Penix

ATL Quarterback #9

Falcons named Michael Penix as the starter for Week 3 against the Packers.

Penix will make his first start since Week 11 of last season, when he suffered a torn ACL against the Panthers. If he plays well enough, Penix will have a chance to secure the starting job for the remainder of the season, but he will have Tua Tagovailoa looming in the background once he is fully recovered from his oblique injury. Penix has struggled early in his career, throwing for 2,757-12-6 in 14 career games while completing just 59.6 percent of his passes. It seems unlikely that he will hold onto the job for the remaining 15 games of the season, but he’ll get the first legitimate crack at it after the Falcons were forced to start Cooper Rush for the first two weeks of the season. Penix shouldn’t be viewed as anything more than a low-end QB2 for fantasy purposes on Thursday night against the Packers.

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Ed Oliver

BUF Defensive Lineman #91
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Bills coach Joe Brady said the team thinks Ed Oliver (knee) avoided a long-term injury.

Brady said the same goes for nickel CB Dee Alford (ankle). While this is positive news for the Bills’ defense, Oliver has already missed one game this season with a hip injury. Alford is not a top-tier coverage defender, but both players will be missed in the short term.
- Nic Bodiford

Source: Lance Lysowski
Dee Alford
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Emari Demercado

FA Running Back #31
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Cowboys waived RB Emari Demercado.

Tyler Goodson has had the RB2 role for the past couple of weeks and is set to continue now that Demercado was waived to make room for Tyler Smith to come off injured reserve. Demercado has now been waived twice in two months, and though he may be claimed again, he could also wind up on a practice squad next week.
- Rivers McCown

Transaction

Source: Nick Harris
Tyler Goodson
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Christian Gonzalez

NE Cornerback #0
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Christian Gonzalez (shoulder) was not seen practicing on Thursday.

Gonzalez and fellow starting perimeter CB Carlton Davis (neck) have missed each of the Patriots’ first two practices this week, putting them on the wrong side of questionable for Week 5 against the Raiders. Las Vegas lines up Brock Bowers as a wide receiver most of the time. Missing both starting coverage defenders would make life tough on the defense.
- Nic Bodiford

Source: Mike Reiss
Carlton Davis III
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Tanor Bortolini

IND Center
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Colts C Tanor Bortolini (ankle) resumed practicing on Thursday.

The Colts’ starting center is back, sporting a brace on his right ankle. Assuming he makes it through today and tomorrow without suffering a setback, he should be good to go for Week 5.
- Nic Bodiford

Injury

Source: Nathan Brown

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DJ Moore

BUF Wide Receiver #2
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DJ Moore (shoulder) was not spotted in the media-viewing portion of practice on Thursday.

Joe Brady is quoted as saying that if Moore feels he’s healthy enough to play, he “owes it to the WR to let him be out there.” It’s not exactly a quote that inspires a lot of confidence in Moore’s availability for Monday night’s matchup with the Rams after he left Week 4’s game due to landing on the shoulder. We would regard Moore as on the doubtful side of questionable at this point, but there’s time to turn that around on Friday and Saturday.
- Rivers McCown

Injury

Source: Lance Lysowski

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Drew Kendall

PHI Center #66
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Eagles C Drew Kendall (knee) was not seen practicing on Thursday.

With C Cam Jurgens now a Raven, Kendall is the Eagles’ starting center. Unfortunately, he is not practicing this week, leaving practice squad C/OG Jake Majors as his potential Week 5 fill-in. Potential starting OT Fred Johnson (knee) is practicing.
- Nic Bodiford

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Source: Tim McManus
Fred Johnson

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Saquon Barkley

PHI Running Back #26
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Saquon Barkley (hamstring) was not seen practicing on Thursday.

Barkley will likely be listed as a non-participant on today’s official injury report. He is unlikely to play in Week 5 against the Jaguars. Aside from Barkley, the Eagles have RBs Will Shipley and Dameon Pierce on the active roster. Shipley will probably lead the backfield in touches this week, but it could be a messy workload split.
- Nic Bodiford

Injury

Source: Tim McManus
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Tee Higgins

CIN Wide Receiver #5
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Tee Higgins (adductor/neck) was not seen practicing on Thursday.

Higgins is sporting a T-shirt and shorts at today’s practice. We expect to see him listed as a non-participant at the end of the day. Consecutive absences put him on the wrong side of questionable for the Bengals’ Week 5 game against the Dolphins, though he still has at least a small chance of turning things around tomorrow. Stay tuned.
- Nic Bodiford

Injury

Source: Charlie Clifford

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Malik Nabers

NYG Wide Receiver #1
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Malik Nabers (knee) resumed practicing on Thursday.

Nabers is currently going through route running drills with his position group, putting him on track to play in Week 5 against the Commanders. Nabers sat out yesterday, citing extra soreness in his surgically repaired knee, but told ESPN’s Jordan Raanan that he usually feels better as the week progresses. A WR1 finish is in play this week, assuming he is active.
- Nic Bodiford

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Source: Paul Schwartz

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Ja'Marr Chase

CIN Wide Receiver #1
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Ja’Marr Chase (concussion) is present and wearing pads at practice on Thursday.

It looks like Chase will practice in some capacity today. He made the long walk to the Bengals’ practice field, fully suited up in pads, carrying his helmet. Given the NFL’s five-phase concussion protocol, we expect to see him listed as a limited participant today, but we will provide an update if he upgrades to full participation. Chase has a chance to play in Week 5 against the Dolphins.
- Nic Bodiford

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Source: Mike Petraglia

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