Three quarterbacks, only one healthy enough to play
Eight of Cooper Rush’s 12 completions last Sunday went to his running back. That is where Atlanta’s offense is right now, and Rush is taking the snaps again.
He ran the first-team reps in Friday’s practice. NFL Network has him making a second straight start on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers, with Atlanta finally at home for its season opener in front of its own crowd.
Two injuries created the mess. Tua Tagovailoa, named the Week 1 starter, hurt his obliques days before the trip to Pittsburgh. Michael Penix Jr. is still working back from the torn ACL he suffered last season. He took first-unit reps earlier in the week but never got cleared.
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143 yards, two picks, one very bad fourth quarter
Rush, 32, had a rough first outing in Atlanta colors. Twelve of 22 for 143 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in the 20-13 loss to the Steelers.
The completion chart told the story. Bijan Robinson caught eight of those 12 balls. Atlanta barely tested anything downfield and lived on the short stuff all afternoon.
Then came the second pick. T.J. Watt took it 35 yards the other way for a touchdown in the fourth. A pick-six at the worst possible moment, thrown at the most feared pass rusher in the sport.
Two 0-1 teams, one division that usually stays tight
Atlanta and Carolina arrive with matching records. No wins, one loss. The NFC South tends to come down to a game or two at the top, which makes an 0-2 start the kind of thing that costs somebody a playoff spot in December.
Rush is not a volume thrower. He is a veteran backup built to keep a game upright without torching it himself. Last Sunday’s line, 143 yards with two picks against one score, fell short of even that modest job description.
Which leaves Atlanta with the question nobody in the building is answering out loud: how long can they keep waiting on Penix?
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