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# NO PR Answers: Is Atlanta’s 0–2 Start a Personnel Problem, a Coaching Problem—or Both?
- URL: https://www.sanchezsideline.com/falcons-0-2-personnel-coaching-matt-ryan/
- Published: 2026-09-23T02:32:32.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-23T02:32:32.000Z
- Description: Penix was supposed to be the future. Tua was supposed to provide stability. Instead, Atlanta’s failed quarterback plan has exposed problems from the sideline to Matt Ryan’s front office.
- Author: Sanchez Sideline
- Tags: No PR Answers, Atlanta Falcons, NFL, Matt Ryan, Michael Penix, Tua Tagovailoa, Kevin Stefanski, NFL Commentary, Sanchez Sideline

Michael Penix Jr. was supposed to be the future. Tua Tagovailoa was supposed to provide stability. Instead, Atlanta entered Week 2 with Cooper Rush and an undrafted rookie—and now Matt Ryan’s new regime has some explaining to do.

**By Sanchez Sideline Staff** 
**September 22, 2026**

The Atlanta Falcons are not simply 0–2.

They have scored 16 points in two games. They have allowed 54\. Their quarterbacks have thrown five interceptions, and the offense has not reached the red zone once.

Then came Sunday.

The Carolina Panthers walked into Mercedes-Benz Stadium, forced five turnovers and embarrassed Atlanta **34–3**. Cooper Rush threw for 86 yards, tossed two interceptions and lost a fumble before being benched. Rookie Jack Strand entered the game, threw a pick-six on his first NFL passing attempt and later lost a fumble.

Carolina did not just beat Atlanta. The Panthers exposed the entire plan.

So what is really wrong with the Falcons?

Is it the personnel? Is it the coaching? Is it the front office?

The honest answer is **all three**—but the deepest problem begins with how this roster was constructed.

## Atlanta Built a Quarterback Room on Hope

Michael Penix Jr. was supposed to be the answer.

The Falcons used the eighth overall pick on him in 2024, creating immediate controversy because the team had just signed Kirk Cousins. The organization insisted Penix represented the future.

Then the future suffered another setback.

Penix tore his left ACL in November 2025 and entered this season still working his way back. He was medically cleared for full practices in late August, but being cleared to practice and being ready to survive an NFL game are not the same thing.

Through 12 career starts, Penix is 4–8\. There have been flashes, but there has not been enough sustained production to declare that the Falcons solved their quarterback problem.

That does not mean Penix cannot become the answer.

It means Atlanta treated an unanswered question like a certainty.

Because Penix’s availability was never guaranteed, the new front office needed legitimate insurance.

That is where Tua Tagovailoa entered the picture.

## Why Did Atlanta Believe Tua Would Save Anything?

The Falcons signed Tagovailoa to a one-year, $1.3 million contract after Miami released him. Financially, it was a low-risk move. Atlanta received a quarterback with a 44–32 career record, more than 18,000 passing yards and previous Pro Bowl recognition for approximately the veteran minimum.

On paper, you can understand the temptation.

But football is not played on paper—and Miami was willing to absorb an enormous salary-cap hit to move on.

Tagovailoa’s Dolphins tenure included productive stretches, but it was also defined by injuries, availability concerns, inconsistent late-season performances and repeated questions about whether Miami could depend on him when the stakes increased.

Atlanta looked at all of that and apparently saw stability.

That is the part that makes no sense.

If Penix was still recovering from ACL surgery, why was his primary competition another quarterback whose durability had been one of the biggest concerns surrounding his career?

The Falcons did not sign Tua as an unquestioned backup. General manager Ian Cunningham said he would compete with Penix for the starting job. Tagovailoa eventually won that competition—but suffered an oblique injury while preparing for Week 1 and has not played.

The gamble lasted until the season actually started.

[Atlanta signed Tagovailoa to compete with Penix](https://www.reuters.com/sports/falcons-gm-tua-tagovailoa-compete-with-michael-penix-jr--flm-2026-03-13/?ref=sanchezsideline.com)

## Cooper Rush and Jack Strand Were the Emergency Plan

With Penix not ready and Tagovailoa injured, Atlanta turned to Cooper Rush.

Rush entered Week 1 dealing with back spasms. He completed 12 of 22 passes for 143 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions during a 20–13 loss to Pittsburgh. One of those interceptions was returned for a touchdown.

His 2.6 QBR was the worst in the league.

Atlanta started him again against Carolina.

On the Falcons’ first offensive play, Rush fumbled. He later threw two interceptions and was benched after producing 86 passing yards.

The home crowd began chanting for Jack Strand.

They got him—and immediately discovered why an undrafted rookie from Division II Minnesota State-Moorhead had been fourth on the quarterback depth chart.

Strand’s first regular-season pass was tipped and returned for a touchdown. He later lost a fumble.

That is not an indictment of Strand. He was placed into a situation he was never supposed to be ready to rescue.

The same is largely true of Rush.

Rush is a career backup. Strand is a developmental rookie. Neither player built this quarterback room, created the depth chart or decided Atlanta could survive September with Penix and Tua carrying significant health questions.

They were the emergency equipment.

The front office is responsible for why the building was already burning.

[Cooper Rush and Jack Strand struggled in the 34–3 loss](https://www.reuters.com/sports/nfl/bryce-young-panthers-defense-blitz-falcons-big-win--flm-2026-09-20/?ref=sanchezsideline.com)

## Kevin Stefanski Does Not Get a Free Pass

The roster construction deserves criticism, but head coach Kevin Stefanski cannot shrug his shoulders and point toward the injury report.

Atlanta did not merely lose two close games with backup quarterbacks. The Falcons looked unprepared.

They turned the ball over five times against Carolina. The blocking was poor. The offense could not consistently create opportunities for Bijan Robinson. The special teams contributed mistakes. The defense allowed Bryce Young to throw for 287 yards and three touchdowns.

The Falcons trailed 20–3 at halftime and never produced anything resembling a credible response.

Yes, it is difficult to call an offense when the starting quarterback and his expected backup are injured.

But coaching is not only about designing plays for perfect circumstances. It is about preparing the players who are available, protecting their limitations and preventing a bad situation from becoming a public humiliation.

Stefanski knew Rush was dealing with back issues. He knew Strand was a raw developmental prospect. He knew the offensive line was struggling and that Chris Lindstrom had been dealing with an injury.

Where was the adjustment?

Where was the simplified passing game? Where was the offense built around Robinson? Where was the plan to keep Rush out of obvious passing situations?

By the second half, there was no plan. There was only damage control.

Stefanski has been hesitant to name a Week 3 starter. That uncertainty is understandable medically, but it also reinforces the larger problem: two weeks into the season, Atlanta still does not know who should run its offense.

[Stefanski has not committed to a Week 3 quarterback](https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/%5F/id/49993161/falcons-kevin-stefanski-too-soon-make-week-3-qb-call?ref=sanchezsideline.com)

## What Exactly Is Matt Ryan Doing in That Front Office?

Now we arrive at the uncomfortable question.

What is Matt Ryan doing?

Ryan was hired in January as the Falcons’ president of football. This was not a ceremonial alumni position. He reports directly to Arthur Blank, oversees the football operation, and both the general manager and head coach report to him.

Ryan helped select Ian Cunningham as general manager and Kevin Stefanski as head coach. The quarterback room was constructed under their leadership.

That means the responsibility eventually reaches his desk.

Ryan is one of the greatest players in franchise history. He understands quarterback play, the Atlanta market and the pressure surrounding this organization better than almost anyone.

But being a great quarterback does not automatically make someone a great football executive.

Playing experience is valuable. It is not front-office experience.

Ryan entered the job promising accountability, strategic planning and long-term thinking. Two games are not enough to declare his tenure a failure—but they are enough to evaluate whether the first major decisions made under his leadership created avoidable problems.

The quarterback plan was supposed to offer options.

Instead, it produced uncertainty at every level:

- Penix was not fully ready.
- Tua could not stay available.
- Rush was already physically compromised.
- Strand was nowhere near prepared to lead an NFL offense.

For a former MVP quarterback running the football operation, that is a particularly difficult failure to explain.

[Matt Ryan oversees Atlanta’s football operation](https://www.reuters.com/sports/matt-ryan-run-football-operations-falcons--flm-2026-01-10/?ref=sanchezsideline.com)

## The Defense Is Not Innocent Either

The quarterback disaster has consumed the headlines, but Atlanta’s defense cannot disappear from the conversation.

The unit showed promise during the Week 1 loss to Pittsburgh. Za’Darius Smith generated pressure, Maason Smith flashed inside and the defense did enough to keep the Falcons within striking distance.

Against Carolina, that progress vanished.

Bryce Young threw three touchdowns. Darren Waller repeatedly found space. Tetairoa McMillan finished with 101 receiving yards. The Panthers converted Atlanta’s turnovers into points, but they also moved the ball without needing help.

A serious defense has to respond when the offense struggles.

Atlanta’s defense helped the struggle become a blowout.

That does not make the defense the team’s biggest problem. It confirms that the problem is larger than one position.

## So Is It Personnel or Coaching?

It is both.

The personnel department assembled a quarterback room dependent upon two players with significant injury concerns.

The coaching staff failed to build a functional emergency offense around the quarterbacks who were available.

The players responded with turnovers, penalties, missed assignments and poor execution.

And the executive overseeing the entire operation is learning one of the hardest lessons in professional sports: bringing a beloved former player home does not protect him from accountability.

Matt Ryan does not need to be fired after two games. That would be ridiculous.

But he does need to explain the vision.

Why was Tua the preferred insurance for Penix? Why was Rush the best option behind two quarterbacks with injury concerns? Why was Strand the only alternative when neither veteran was available? Why does an offense featuring Bijan Robinson, Drake London and Kyle Pitts look completely incapable of threatening the red zone?

These are not overreactions.

They are the questions an 0–2 team deserves after being embarrassed at home by a divisional opponent.

## What Atlanta Has to Do Now

First, stop pretending the quarterback competition is still a luxury.

If Penix is medically and mentally ready, the Falcons must give him the offense and find out whether he can become the franchise quarterback they drafted him to be. If he is not ready, do not rush him onto the field simply because the next three games are in prime time.

Second, build the offense around Robinson.

Atlanta cannot ask Rush, Strand or a returning Penix to carry the entire operation. The Falcons need the running game, quick throws, play-action and defined reads that protect the quarterback and create manageable third downs.

Third, the offensive line must stabilize immediately.

No quarterback plan works when the protection repeatedly breaks down and the offense constantly plays behind schedule.

Fourth, Stefanski has to establish an identity.

Right now, Atlanta is not a running team, a passing team, a physical team or a disciplined team. It is simply a team searching for answers.

Finally, Ryan and Cunningham must be honest about the roster they constructed.

The Falcons do not need another press conference filled with phrases such as “trust the process” and “we believe in the guys in the room.”

The room is the problem.

## NO PR Answer

Atlanta’s 0–2 start is not solely a quarterback problem.

It is an organizational problem.

The quarterbacks have played poorly. The coaches have not adjusted. The offensive line has struggled. The defense collapsed against Carolina. The front office created a depth chart that could not withstand the exact health concerns everyone knew existed.

That is why the Falcons keep Falconing.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/dd/cc/ddcc24fb-86d0-4ee3-b21e-75f1e2d638ec/content/images/2026/09/no-pr-falcons-1.png)

It is not a curse. It is not bad luck. It is not something in the Georgia air.

It is what happens when questionable decisions stack on top of each other until the final result feels inevitable.

Michael Penix Jr. may return and change the direction of the season. Tua may eventually get healthy. Kevin Stefanski may discover an offense that works.

But none of that changes what the first two weeks revealed.

Atlanta did not have a dependable plan.

And when the plan disappeared, so did the Falcons.

**No spin. No excuses. No PR answers.**