Hey y’all.
It’s that time again. Time for Tyler to make a perfectly reasonable assumption that quickly turns out to be very wrong.
But … maybe not this time?
JUST SPITBALLING HERE
The Falcons will, undoubtedly, announce Sunday’s starting quarterback sometime shortly after I send this newsletter. That’s how things tend to work.
But I’ll go ahead and say it anyway: Expect Cooper Rush to get the call.
The more I think about it (a dangerous proposition!), the more I figure that’s been the plan since Michael Penix Jr. missed Week 1.
And the calendar’s a big reason why.
Once Penix declared himself unready for the opener, there was no way Stefanski & Co. were trotting him out for Week 2 — because Week 3 is a Thursday night game in Green Bay.
As our pal Daniel Flick wrote in the most recent edition of the Dirty Birds Dispatch (sign up here), this is Penix’s team when he’s healthy. That’s true.
And as I see it, the only real goal for the 2026 Falcons is for Penix to play a lot so the new administration can learn a lot about him … then decide if they’ll stick with the injury-prone 26-year-old or start heading another direction.
After exercising (indulging?) so much caution to this point, would they really let Penix debut Sunday and expect him to play again four days later?
Probably not.
It’d be even odder to put Penix out there this weekend, play Rush or whoever on Thursday, then go back to Penix after that.
Right?
We’re not ruling anything out, of course. This is the Atlanta Falcons. But if the original plan was to play Tua Tagovailoa until Penix was healthy (and we think it was), might as well let it play out with Rush.
In the meantime, my advice for fellow fans: To take another spin or two on the Quarterback Wheel of Destiny. Laugh it off. Do some deep breathing. Touch some grass.
And focus on the $150 million in cap space the Falcons will have next offseason.
Stay tuned to @ByDanielFlick and AJC.com/falcons for updates and analysis, whenever the announcement comes.
PULSE CHECK: BRAVES PLAYOFFS EDITION
The Braves can clinch a postseason spot on Friday with a win over the Astros or a Diamondbacks loss to the Yankees. As for the division:
- The Phillies won Thursday, so Atlanta’s lead in the National League East remains at four games (with nine to play). The magic number remains at five.
- The earliest possible date for a crowning, by my math: Sunday.
🤔 Two questions, though: How are you feeling about it … and who do you want the Braves to play?
Los Bravos are limping into things a bit, with a 7-8 record in September. Ronald Acuña Jr. aside, the offense has been inconsistent at best.
As far as potential playoff opponents: Right now, the Braves are penciled into the No. 3 seed and would host the sixth-seeded Padres in a best-of-3 series. The Cubs and Phillies are other possibilities, but columnist Michael Cunningham suggests Atlanta should feel pretty good about San Diego.
- To wit: “The ideal October opponent for the Braves has few good left-handed pitchers and few dangerous right-handed sluggers. That’s the Padres. They’ve lately been on a hot streak against teams out of contention, but the Braves are built to beat them in October.”
More explanation in the column. You should read it.
✅ Then open the fancy form to assess your anxiety (scale of 1 to 10) and pick your preferred opponent. You can email tyler.estep@ajc.com, too.
NUMBER OF THE DAY: 22
That’s how many high school football teams from Georgia now reside in the top 100 of the national Massey Ratings. Math ain’t my strong suit … but that’s roughly 22% of the whole thing.
Seems good.
🔗 More preps news: Top 10 games; Buford-Grayson full of prospects; Rejuvenated South Georgia rivalry
ACTUALLY, THESE NUMBERS ARE EVEN BETTER
The Atlanta Dream returned from the FIBA World Cup break and beat Connecticut by 1 million points. Angel Reese put up a rare 30-point double-double, Allisha Gray broke her own franchise record for points in a season — and Rhyne Howard hit her 129th 3-pointer of the year.
That’s a WNBA record.
With three games left to play in the regular season.
“I mean, I’m breaking a 3-point record every year, so obviously I like to shoot,” Howard said. “Shooters are going to shoot, so I’m going to put my name on it.”
🔗 Recommended read: How Sandersville shaped Allisha Gray
COLLEGE FOOTBALL WATCH PARTY
Georgia Tech will finally win (sorry, Mercerians). Georgia will embarrass Arkansas. The Oxford, Mississippi, police department will stay busy.
Beyond those shockingly original insights, I’m tapped out on interesting things to say about college football this week … so here’s a nonexhaustive list of games to watch.
Friday: No. 22 Houston at No. 13 Texas Tech, 8 p.m. on Fox.
Saturday at noon: Georgia Tech vs. Mercer (ACC Network); No. 2 Georgia at Arkansas (ABC); North Carolina at Clemson (ESPN)
Saturday at 3:30 p.m.: Florida State at No. 10 Alabama (ABC); No. 16 SMU at No. 23 Louisville (ESPN2)
Saturday at 7:30 p.m.: No. 7 LSU at No. 8 Ole Miss, ABC.
OTHER THINGS I SAW ON THE INTERNET
🖥️ Georgia’s baseball coach got a contract extension. Georgia Tech’s baseball coach apparently got his hands on a Trajekt machine, a kind of insane and very expensive device that can replicate any pitcher’s real life pitches (delivery, arm slot, spin rate, etc. etc.).
🖥️ Trae Young is an answer in today’s New York Times crossword puzzle.
🖥️ I’ve actually watched dirt-track racing in person a time or two. I was not aware that sometimes it involves a bunch of dudes (women aren’t this stupid) driving junkers around a track and trying to park on a trailer … which is also being driven around the track, behind a pickup truck.
🖥️ Really bad field goal attempt.
🖥️ Hyrox is basically seeing who can do Crossfit-type stuff the fastest. Put another way: You know in “Eastbound and Down,” when Kenny Powers says he’s playing sports, “not trying to be the best at exercising”? This is people trying to be the best at exercising.
Anyway: At a recent competition, one woman … evacuated all over herself. AND KEPT COMPETING. AND WON. She finally apologized Thursday, via Instagram: “Looking back, I regret the decision to not have stepped off the track.”
So does everyone else, tbh.
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of the Win Column. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact me at tyler.estep@ajc.com.
Until next time.