Falcons QB Carousel: Tua and Penix Splitting First-Team Reps

The Atlanta Falcons are officially doing the thing every NFL team dreads but pretends is totally fine: a 50/50 quarterback split in late August.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski announced today that Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. will split first-team reps at practice, according to ESPN's Marc Raimondi.

"Stefanski: Tua and Penix will split reps with the 1s at practice today. #Falcons (via Marc Raimondi)"

Splitting reps with the starting offense is the football equivalent of telling your friends you and your ex are just figuring things out. It never ends well, and someone is going to end up sleeping on the couch.

Atlanta just smoked the Indianapolis Colts 34-6 over the weekend, but their quarterback room is basically a walking medical tent. Tua is coming off a tight back in late July to add to a resume that includes multiple concussions and a hip dislocation. Meanwhile, Penix is roughly eight months removed from tearing his ACL against the Carolina Panthers last November.

For anyone holding Falcons futures tickets, this is the exact opposite of what you want to hear a couple of weeks before the season. You want a clear starter getting all the timing down with the primary receivers, not a timeshare between two guys who have spent half their careers in the MRI tube.

We will see who actually takes the first snap when the real games start, but right now, Stefanski is playing a dangerous game of musical chairs. Expect this depth chart to stay written in pencil until Week 1.