East miami dolphins quarterback tua tagovailoa plans to sign a one-year deal with atlanta falconsa source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The move now gives the Falcons two left-handed quarterbacks, Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr.., heading into the 2026 season.
Tagovailoa was informed on Monday that he would be released by the Dolphins.
The Falcons entered the offseason in the market for a quarterback, with Penix Jr. recovering from a knee injury. cancer cousin It is set to be released ahead of the start of the new league year on Wednesday.
Atlanta’s answer to the position is Tagovailoa, who will cost the Dolphins an NFL-record $99.2 million in dead money against the salary cap. A source told Schefter that Tagovailoa’s release will be scheduled for after June 1, allowing the Dolphins to split the dead money over two years.
The post-June 1 designation would cause the Dolphins to lose $67.4 million against the salary cap in 2026, followed by $31.8 million in 2027. The move would end Tagovailoa’s six seasons in Miami just one year after he signed a franchise-record extension through 2024.
Penix, who was the Falcons’ starter last season, went down in Week 11 with a torn left ACL. His return date is unclear, although Penix told reporters he believes he will be ready for Week 1.
After Penix’s injury, the Falcons turned to Cousins, who led Atlanta to four consecutive wins to end the season and salvage an 8–9 record.
Just weeks after signing Cousins to a $100 million guaranteed contract, Atlanta drafted Penix with the No. 8 pick in 2024. Cousins led the Falcons to a 6-3 start in 2024, but a hand injury derailed his season. After a five-game span with nine interceptions, Cousins was brought off the bench and given the starting role moving forward to Penix.
Falcons fire coach Raheem Morris and general manager terry fontenot Postseason. He hired former Browns coaches Kevin Stefanski and Ian Cunningham to fill those respective roles. The Falcons also brought in former quarterback Matt Ryan as president of football – a new position – to oversee the head coach and GM.
The Dolphins will have to pay Tagovailoa $54 million in guaranteed money in 2026, minus any salary he would receive from another team. Their total dead cap tops the previous record of $85 million denver broncos is released and absorbed Russell Wilson In 2024.
Tagovailoa’s future in Miami was under public scrutiny for several months after he was ruled out for the final three games of the 2025 season. Sullivan said at the NFL Scouting Combine that “everything is on the table” with the former first-round draft pick, including a trade.
The Dolphins drafted Tagovailoa with the fifth pick in 2020 after a stellar career at Alabama. He became their full-time starting quarterback in 2021, throwing for 2,653 yards and 16 touchdowns against 10 interceptions.
Tagovailoa made his debut with coach Mike McDaniel in 2022, running a Dolphins attack that threw for 3,548 yards and 25 touchdowns, which ranked sixth in total offense. However, he missed four games due to two documented concussions and a third blow to the head, causing the NFL to change its reporting process for concussions.
Tagovailoa led the NFL in passing yards with 4,624 in 2023 and set career highs with 29 touchdown passes; He played in all 18 of Miami’s games, including the AFC wild-card loss. kansas city chiefs. That offseason, he signed a four-year, $212.4 million extension with the Dolphins, making him the highest-paid player in franchise history.
Tagovailoa led the league in completion percentage in 2024, but missed a career-high six games due to injury and a season-ending hip injury. His play was inconsistent throughout the season, and this trend continued into 2025, when he was ultimately ruled out for the final three games after throwing a career-high 15 interceptions.
ESPN’s Marc Raimondi and Marcel Louis-Jacques contributed to this report.
