MAJOR Atlanta Falcons Rumors: Falcons ENCOURAGED To Draft A Quarterback In 2026?
All right, this episode might anger some people, and I totally understand if it does. But with Michael Penn now out for the entire season and suffering his fifth season ending injury in his football career, I think the question now has to become, is it possible that the Atlanta Falcons could draft a quarterback in 2026? I want to go out on the record by saying this. I am not for going out and drafting a quarterback in 2026. However, and before you destroy me in the comments section, I think it is important to discuss a contingency plan because it would be foolish of any NFL GM, even Terry Fontno, not Cherry Fontno, Terry Fontnau, to go out there and say, “We’re only going to roll with Michael Penn, and there’s nothing else behind him.” Now, before we break down the entirety of this episode, what this could mean for MPJ, as well as potential other quarterbacks that could come to Atlanta, the first thing I need you to do, if you want daily timely updates surrounding your dirty birds, you got to subscribe and hit that little bell icon. Once you do that, select the all option. You’re going to get push notifications to your phone anytime we go live for a watch party, anytime that there is news, rumors, etc., We’re going to make a video for you. All right. So, why do I bring up the contingency plan? Moose, you’re out of your mind if you think Michael Pennix Jr. is not going to be the quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons next football season. Well, here’s the reason I bring it up. Reason number one, Kirk is going to be gone after 2025. It’s a $35 million cap savings next year. He’s out of the building. So, you don’t have that veteran presence that you’re looking for. You got the Michael Penn Jr. injuries that we know all about. We broke it down yesterday. you’re going to have a new coaching staff. That’s probably a big indicator of maybe getting another quarterback. And then reason number four, the current draft situation. You don’t have a first round pick. And believe me when I say that, that’s going to be very important for why I say the Falcons could end up drafting a quarterback. I still believe Penn is going to be the starter in 2026. I do. I don’t think the Falcons are ready to give up on Michael Penn Jr. yet. I think the first thing you’re going to see is this coaching staff goes, they’re going to see what he looks like under a new coaching regime. And then this article came out from the Athletic talking about a couple of younger quarterbacks in the NFL. They mentioned Bo Knicks and they mentioned Michael Penn’s Jr. And this is interesting. Jeff How, who is the author of this article, said that the Falcons might be looking at potentially drafting a quarterback in 2026. Here’s what he said. It is entirely unfair to reach any sweeping conclusions on Michael Penn Jr.’s career after just 12 starts, but it would be organizational malpractice to ignore the paths to improvement in the offseason. Penn, who has suffered two season ending knee injuries in college, could lose most, if not all of his off season to rehab. That’s also very important. That would stunt his development in 2026. Even upon his return, the often injury lababeled label would be tough to shake. Meanwhile, in 2025, the Falcons will turn to 37year-old Kirk Cousins, who will earn $100 million through two seasons in Atlanta, is due to earn 35 million in base in 2026. That’s below market rate for a veteran starter. But the Falcons would feel confident in Cousins’s ability to deliver a playoff worthy performance, and he hasn’t been healthy or productive enough for two years to feel great about that possibility. However, it is one thing to look for upgrades, and it’s another one to find one. The veteran market isn’t good, and the draft class is uninspiring. Plus, the Falcons traded their first two round picks for James Pierce Jr. We go on and on and on. There’s a lot to unpack there. I’m sure you’re like, “Jesus, this just goes completely on in a circle.” I could just sum it up for you really quickly. The perfect opportunity for the Atlanta Falcons to draft a quarterback would be this year. Why? There would be no pressure to play a first round quarterback. First round quarterbacks are almost often always looked upon as the immediate starter day one, if not through the first three to four weeks. Well, you don’t have a first round pick this year. James Pierce Jr. was that first round pick. So in 2026 in Pittsburgh, it might be the perfect opportunity to take a quarterback in the second or third round and just develop him for the first year. Let him sit. And if Michael Pennix Jr. isn’t the guy, you’ve got your replacement strategy right there. I’m going to break down some names that you need to know both in the NFL veteran quarterback market as well as some guys you could target in the second and third round. But I’ll ask you this question before we start with that. Should the Falcons draft a quarterback in 2026? Yes or no? Like I said, I don’t know that I would considering there’s a lot of other needs that this team has outside of the quarterback position. But I also know that teams do crazy stuff all the time. Now, before I continue on with today’s episode, I have to tell you about my friends over at Factor. Look, the weather has completely changed. It is now fall. Pardon me, but that’s where our friends over at Factor come in. I personally love factor meals. As someone that gets tough time to find themselves time to cook, factor comes in clutch. You get more variety and more meals. You could choose from a wider selection of weekly meal options, including premium seafood choices like salmon and shrimp at no extra cost. You can also support your wellness goals, even more GLP1 friendly meals and new Mediterranean diet options packed with protein and good for you fats. for more choices to better nutrition. 97% of customers and more say that Factor helped them live a healthier lifestyle. Feel the difference no matter what your routine is. Eatsmart atfactormeals.com/falcons chat 50 off and use code falcons chat50 off to get 50% off your first box plus free breakfast for one year. That’s code falcons chat50 off at factormeals.com for 50% off your first box plus free breakfast for one year. Get delicious ready to eat meals delivered with factor. offer only valid for new factor customers with code and qualifying autorenewing subscription purchase. So Jeff House said it best himself. The 2026 NFL free agent quarterback class is lackluster. In fact, I went through almost every single one. I’m going to give you the five best ones. Not even like great options. These are the five best that I could find. They are as follows. Indiana Jones, Aaron Rodgers, Zack Wilson, Russell Wilson, and Joe Flacco. Well, I can tell you this right now. The Colts are going to resign Daniel Jones to a contract extension. Whether that’s three years or four years, I’m not entirely sure. He’s pretty much going to be guaranteed to stay in Indianapolis. The other four, old man Rogers, crazy talented Zack Wilson that lacks any sort of structure, Russell Wilson, and Joe Flacco. I mean, take your pick. Like, the the only two quarterbacks worth a damn in this list outside of Daniel Jones are Rogers and Flaco. And they’re literally ancient. And those are the best options. It’s not good. I do not want to sign a quarterback at all in this free agency class. So, let’s move on over to the draft really quick. What do the current 2026 draft picks look like? round two, round three, round four, round six, and round seven. Well, I can tell you this right out of the gate. I don’t want to draft a single player in the fourth, sixth, or seventh round because those players, traditionally speaking, don’t usually make franchise quarterbacks. So, if you’re going to draft a quarterback, you don’t want to draft someone that just will be a career serviceable backup. You would want to draft someone that in the event that you needed to play them, they could end up being the franchise guy. So, you’re going to find those quarterbacks in round two or round three. So, let’s focus primarily on round two and round three. Pick number 42 and pick number 73 at this point. So, we’re going to start with the second and third round quarterbacks. I’m not even going to mention the guys that are going to be taken in the first round. So, get Fernando Mendoza out of your mind. Get uh Dante Moore out of your mind. Let’s just go with the guys that I believe are going to be picked in the second and third round. We’ll start with number one, Lenora Cellers, South Carolina quarterback. Uh, and this is a guy that has all of the physical traits that you want from an NFL quarterback that is definitely a project rather than a prospect. He’s got incredible arm talent with crazy velocity. I mean, I’m not going to lie to you, it kind of looks like Michael Vic. Like, he just flicks that ball and it comes out like a rocket. Now, he’s a righty, not a lefty, so it doesn’t look exactly the same, but he’s got that awesome dual threat ability as well. He’s got great acceleration. He’s got unbelievable running skills. Now, the one area that he does need to get better at is his layup package, meaning the easy stuff, the out routes into the flat, the checkdowns. He looks for the big play far too frequently, which is again something that you can coach out of a player, but you need the right coach to do so. And this year, his team around him not good. He’s only got nine touchdowns. He’s got six picks. So, he’s a little bit turnoverprone this year. But I think there is something to be said about all of the traits that you look for in a player like Lenora Sers. He’s big, he’s strong, he’s fast, and he’s just crazy talented. The perfect year-long project. You wouldn’t even consider starting him in the first year as long as Michael Penn Jr. is healthy. Let PennX develop. Let Penn go through year three. And if it stinks or you see another injury, you have somebody that you can develop those skills and could end up being a franchise quarterback. So sellers would be at the top of my list in terms of a project quarterback. Number two from USC, Jaden Mava and Mava better passer, better pure traditional thrower of the football than Lenora Sers. But there’s a couple of things from a fundamental standpoint that I’m not so sold on Jaden Mayava yet. But again, size there. 6’4, 230 lbs. He’s got lightning quick release with great quick game execution. One of the best things about him is his ability to run a no huddle offense. Lincoln Riley loves to keep defensive uh fronts and defensive units on their heels and Mayava has done an excellent job of the quick game execution. However, while he does possess really good pocket presence and pocket awareness, when the pocket collapses, he gets sloppy. And that’s the part of the game where the fundamentals come into play. His footwork at points just looks so panicky. Kind of like Michael Penn Jr. when he faces the Blitz. So that’s another thing that needs to be coached out of him. He’s got to learn that I can stand firm in the pocket with the blitz and rely on my quick release to get rid of the ball fast. Out of all the quarterbacks that I’m going to list today, he’s got the best numbers. 66% completion percentage, almost 67 67 67 and 2,800 yards passing, 18 touchdowns, six picks. This is a player that I believe is probably the most NFL ready and he saw major improvement from 2024 to 2025. In 2024, it kind of looked like sellers a little bit of a project. Now in 2025, you can see the smoothing out of his game. Is it quite a finished product yet? No, of course not. And I think those lack of the fundamentals when the play breaks down have led to his grade being like round two or round three. But Mayava, when it comes to his pocket awareness, when it comes to his lightning quick release, it’s about as good as it can get in this draft class. Final quarterback, Cade Clubick from Clemson. And Clubnik, look, there’s a lot of people that loved Clubnick. I liked him. I didn’t say I loved him when he, you know, at the beginning of this 2025 season and things have just kind of fallen downhill. However, there’s still a lot that you could love about this player, this prospect. His deep ball might be the best in class. It’s outstanding the touch that he throws with. And it’s a pretty deep ball, too. It look, it passes the eye test. It’s just so effortless throwing down the field. He’s got excellent pocket manipulation skills. So, his ability to dance around the pocket is awesome. However, he’s the leanest frame out of the three guys that I listed here, and he’s way too reliant on his first reads. I went back and watched the tape on him. Almost every single time he gets that football, he’s looking to one side of the field, and he just rips it. He doesn’t go through his progressions nearly enough. And I also believe that that could be a reason why Clemson has struggled this much this year. If you remember before the season started, he was projected to be the number one overall pick. No, no, no, not the number one quarterback. The number one overall pick before it started and then the season started and Clemson just flatlined. They stink this year by comparison to what they were even just two years ago. And with that being said, his numbers, they’re not great, but they’re respectable. 67 67. I’m going to keep doing it. 2300 yards passing, 14 touchdowns, five picks. Clubnick probably not the NFL body that you’re looking for, but what you do get out of Clubnik is somebody that’s a natural passer of the football. He’s got great pocket awareness and just like the rest of these guys, there’s good things about his game, but there are some obvious flaws. You don’t want a one reed quarterback in Clubnick. You don’t want someone whose footwork breaks down when the pocket collapses. And you don’t want to start someone who is definitely considered a project like Lenora Sers. This is why all three of these guys are going to go in the second or third round. But like I said earlier in this video, if PennX is going to be the starter anyway in 2026, a project might be a great pick. So again, I don’t know the right answer yet. I’m not in Terry Fontno’s head. But what I do know is there’s a lot of people, including Jeff How and other Falcons fans that I have seen in the comments section have all said there’s a legitimate narrative out there right now that the Falcons might be willing to move on from Michael Penn Jr. Who knows? But uh I know right now things look bleak. So of course we’re going to bring up some major rumors about this because right now the news is that all of your playmakers are out, Pennix is out, London is out, and you’ve got a game coming up against the New Orleans Saints that uh let’s hope we can find a way to win. That’s going to do it for us on today’s episode. I’ll be back a little bit later with more news and rumors surrounding your favorite team. Rise up and be cool.
Atlanta Falcons rumors in this episode surround Falcons current quarterback Micahel Penix Jr and his season ending injury after the week 11 loss to the Carolina Panthers. Falcons Today host Trace Moustakas claims that it wouldn’t be crazy to consider drafting a quarterback this football season if you’re Terry Fontenot and the Falcons front office. Moose says that with a lack of a first round draft pick in 2026, the perfect time to draft a quarterback would be right now, with a new coaching staff and no pressure for a 1st round pick to play. Moose ends the episode with claiming LaNorris Sellers, Cade Klubnick and Jayden Maiava are all quarterbacks willing to look into in the 2026 NFL draft.
Factor, America’s #1 Ready-To-Eat Meal Kit, can help you fuel up fast with chef-prepared, dietitian-approved ready-to-eat meals delivered straight to your door. Use our special link https://www.factormeals.com/falconschat50off and promo code: falconschat50off to get 50% off!
Never worry you might miss some news on the Falcons! Hit that noti bell 🔔
Jeff Howe On Michael Penix Jr:
“It’s entirely unfair to reach any sweeping conclusions on Penix’s career after 12 starts, but it’d be organizational malpractice to ignore paths to improvement in the offseason. Penix, who suffered two season-ending knee injuries in college, could lose most, if not all, of his offseason to rehab. That’d stunt his development in 2026. Even upon his return, the oft-injured label will be tough to shake.Meanwhile, the 2025 Falcons will turn to 37-year-old Kirk Cousins, who will earn $100 million through two seasons in Atlanta. He’s due to earn $35 million in base salary in 2026. While that’s below market rate for a veteran starter, the Falcons would have to feel confident in Cousins’ ability to deliver a playoff-worthy performance, and he hasn’t been healthy or productive enough for two years to feel great about that possibility. However, it’s one thing to look for upgrades, and it’s another to find one. The veteran market isn’t great, and the draft class is uninspiring. Plus, the Falcons traded their first-round pick to the Rams, so their only strategy might be to take a shot on a mid-rounder and hope for the best if Penix isn’t ready for the start of the 2026 season.”
2026 NFL draft 2nd & 3rd QB’s:
No.1 LaNorris Sellers: (SCAR)
No.2 Jayden Maiava: (USC)
No.3 Cade Klubnik: (CLEM)
Falcons fans know that Falcons Today is the best place to get news and rumors on the Atlanta Falcons: https://www.youtube.com/falconstv?sub_confirmation=1
Moose’s Twitter/X is here for your convenience! https://x.com/Moose_NFL
Want more news & rumors surrounding the NFL, NBA, MLB and college football?
Follow @chatsports Sports on social media:
– Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chatsports
– Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chatsports
– Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chatsports
Current Atlanta Falcons 2026 draft picks:
Round 2: Pick No.42
Round 3: Pick No.73
Round 4: Pick No.108
Round 6: Pick No.182
Round 7: Pick No.222
Falcons fans we want you to give your thoughts in the comments below!
– Should the Falcons draft a quarterback in 2026? Yes or No?
Falcons fans don’t have to worry about missing out! The next Atlanta Falcons YouTube videos are here for the taking:
– The Atlanta Falcons Just Got SEASON ENDING News On Michael Penix Jr. & Drake London https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUwzSl3SpGU
– DEVELOPING: Michael Penix Jr. Done For The Season? Atlanta Falcons News After Loss To Panthers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu01hGT2GWI
– FALCONS ARE A JOKE! Atlanta Falcons LOSE To The Carolina Panthers AGAIN! Reaction https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnKRYzz7drA
DIRTY BIRDS! Subscribe to possibly get featured on the next Wheel Spin! https://www.youtube.com/falconstv?sub_confirmation=1
Dirty Birds, share this Falcons Today YouTube video so more fans can enjoy!
LIKE the video if you hate the Saints! 👍
Find more Atlanta Falcons articles from ESPN, The Falcoholic, & more by checking out the Chat Sports Website: http://chatsports.com/atlanta-falcons
2026 NFL free agent quarterbacks:
Daniel Jones: IND
Aaron Rodgers: PIT
Zach Wilson: MIA
Russell Wilson: NYG
Joe Flacco: CIN
#Falcons #FalconsNews #FalconsRumors #CSFM2025 #ad #CSB
21 comments
Should the Falcons draft a quarterback in 2026? Yes or No?
Neither
No. You need a proven veteran
I’d want a wr with our 2nd round pick like Chris Bell or even Antonio Williams, then I’d be cool if we got a qb after that to back up Penix
STETSON BENNETT IV
Haynes King
Nothing changes without an Owner committed to winning!
Rise up. Go falcons
need a fuckin' o-line..
Yea 100% last year I believed we need defense and we got it this year qb is the pick.
The most helpless feeling in the world is having Klubnik as your QB
Unless it's ty simpson I don't want a QB in 2026. Time to sell players and tank for 2027
Mous you have to stop saying that 67 stuff. It’s demonic but most people don’t know it FYI.
falcon need to build the line on O and D; there is no qb available to elevate their game so hopefully they get the building block in place before a qb.
It's going to be sad next month or 2 watching these guys trying to come up with things to talk about on this channel! 😂
Think it would be foolish with this young talented team to place all of our eggs in the Penix jr basket. Yes, there should absolutely be a search for a possible replacement or backup through the draft or wherever else! Imagine halfway through next season and another injury or Penix simply can’t regain his confidence and we turn to who? Easton Stick…seriously
YES!!!
Nothing will change so long as Arthur blank is the owner
No need to draft a qb get cousins off the books bring it Justin fields low money easten stick plays well drafting an unproven qb is like a box of chocolates never know what you're gonna get? Fields is from atlanta and is proven
No there are to many free agents available continue build the defense fix the offense in free agency and trades
YES YES YES!… people are nuts if they think we don't need another QB… Michael Penix Jr ALWAYS has a chance of tearing his ACL..he's good but risky!..we need 3 elite QBs and other positions needs to be filled.