Who Should I Start? Michael Penix Jr. or Drake Maye

Tuesday, February 3, 10:56 AM

Atlanta Falcons president of football Matt Ryan was non-committal on Tuesday to Michael Penix Jr. (knee) being the team's starting quarterback in 2026, according to Marc Raimondi of ESPN. Penix suffered a torn left ACL last November and is currently recovering after having surgery. He is expected to be out anywhere from nine to 12 months. The 25-year-old completed 60.1% of his passes for 1,982 yards, nine touchdowns, and three interceptions in nine games in 2025 in his first full year as the starter, with the Falcons going 3-6 in his starts. Penix was the eighth overall pick out of Washington in 2024. New head coach Kevin Stefanski has been complimentary of Penix since taking the job, but his health and status as the starter will be a big question mark going into training camp and the start of the 2026 regular season this fall. Penix's fantasy stock is down, and his lengthy injury history -- he's torn his ACL three times -- is a big reason why.

Wednesday, February 4, 3:30 PM

New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (shoulder) was a full participant in practice on Wednesday, per The Athletic's Michael-Shawn Dugar. It's not much of a surprise after Maye said he felt good while throwing the football around on Monday. The 23-year-old second-year signal-caller put in two limited practices last week before picking up a DNP on Friday due to an illness. The Patriots listed him as questionable on last week's final injury report, but barring a setback this week, he should be fully cleared to suit up for Super Bowl LX this Sunday in Santa Clara, Calif., against the Seattle Seahawks. Maye will be an MVP finalist after throwing for 4,394 yards, 31 touchdowns, and eight interceptions with a league best 72% completion percentage during the regular season. It's been a different story in three playoff games, though, as he's completed only 55.8% of his passes for 533 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions while fumbling six times (three lost).