The New Season is Finally Here: What You Need to Know About the Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons will have their first game of the season September 13th, 2026 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. There has been anticipation with the new season after the Falcons released their back-up QB, Kirk Cousins. They replaced him with former Miami Dolphins QB, Tua Tagovailoa. The Falcons ended their season last year 8-9, where they placed 3rd overall in their division. 

Looking into the beginning of the season, star quarterback, Michael Penix Jr, is ready for the new season after his ACL injury saying, “[My] ACL is amazing and [I] should never have another problem with it the rest of his career” according to Yahoo Sports. While this was good news for fans, star cornerback, James Pierce Jr, is suspended until November. This is due to getting arrested off-season, which is a violation of the NFL’s personal conduct policy. 

The Falcons official 53-man roster was released Sunday, August 30th. This included a fourth QB Jack Strand making the roster. This comes as a surprise as the typical 53-man roster consists of two to three QB’s. Since they have four QB’s, they had to cut running back Tyler Goodson. Now the Falcons only have two running backs, Bijan Robinson Jr. and number 1 running back in the NFL, Bijan Robinson. 

The Falcons had their final pre-season game against the Miami Dolphins Friday, August 28th. Even after winning the game 17-12, head coach Kevin Stefanski mentioned his worries about the team after back-up QB Tua Tagovailoa fumbled the ball, according to Yahoo Sports. Coach Stefanski came into the position on January 17th, 2026. This came after former head coach Raheem Morris got fired. 

Junior Draiden Cain said that the Falcons are “mid just like [the rest of the sports team in] Atlanta.” This comes as no surprise as the Falcons all-time win percentage is a .438, which is just below average. Stay tuned into the Atlanta Falcons games this year to see how their season turns out and whether or not they are actually “mid.”