Falcons' Tagovailoa day-to-day with oblique strain; Week 1 status against Steelers uncertain

Falcons quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered an oblique injury during Thursday practice and is listed day-to-day with status uncertain for Sunday's Week 1 opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers, according to ESPN and sources speaking to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. During the media viewing portion of practice, Tagovailoa threw a pass, then grabbed at his back before sitting down and did not throw another pass during the remainder of the viewing period, per ESPN. Tagovailoa was named the Falcons' starter on Monday, selected over Michael Penix Jr., per ESPN. However, Penix is recovering from left ACL surgery last November and is expected to be inactive for Week 1, according to CBS Sports. Penix returned to full practice only two weeks ago and told coach Kevin Stefanski he did not feel ready for live game action, per ESPN. During training camp, Penix participated in only six 11-on-11 practices, per CBS Sports. Tagovailoa came into training camp with a tight back and missed the first week of practices, according to ESPN. If both Tagovailoa and Penix are unavailable, the Falcons would turn to Cooper Rush or undrafted rookie Jack Strand, according to CBS Sports. Cooper Rush took all reps with the first-team offense during Thursday practice, the first time since joining Atlanta he received significant reps with the first unit, per ESPN. Rush has started 16 games in eight NFL seasons with a 9-7 record, per ESPN, and was signed by the Falcons on July 29, the day training camp began. When asked if he would start Sunday, Rush said he was not told but would be ready if he got the call, per ESPN. Strand, a first-team D-II All-American from Minnesota State-Moorhead in 2025, went undrafted, per CBS Sports. Tagovailoa was released by the Miami Dolphins in the offseason, with Miami absorbing an NFL-record 99.2 million dollars in dead cap, per ESPN. The Falcons signed him to a one-year, 1.3 million dollar contract. Tagovailoa has an injury history marked by concussions, per ESPN. Mike Tomlin, now an NBC analyst, made a public comment ahead of the matchup. According to Awful Announcing, Tomlin said of Tagovailoa: "His last visit to Pittsburgh didn't go well. I was in the stadium that day; they lost, he got benched." Tomlin was referencing last year's Steelers-Dolphins game in Pittsburgh, a Steelers win that eliminated Miami from the playoffs, per Awful Announcing.