Falcons QB depth chart: Does Michael Penix Jr.'s return mean end of Tua Tagovailoa?

The Falcons are off to a dismal start this season, but better days could be on the way after Michael Penix Jr. was named the team's starting quarterback for "Thursday Night Football" against the Packers.

Atlanta can't look to Penix as the player who will fix every problem, but his return is a welcomed sight after Cooper Rush struggled mightily to start the season.

In the middle of the Falcons' quarterback madness is Tua Tagovailoa, who was named the team's Week 1 starter before going down with an injury just days before making his team debut.

Here's an updated look at the Falcons' quarterback depth chart with Penix back.

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Falcons QB depth chart

* - Out with oblique injury.

The Falcons haven't officially declared Penix their starter when every quarterback is healthy, but his return on Thursday night clearly means that he will have first crack at keeping the job this season over Tagovailoa.

Tagovailoa was named the Falcons' Week 1 starter, only to suffer an oblique injury in practice just days before Atlanta's opener. Rush then started the first two games of the season but was benched for undrafted rookie Jack Strand late in Sunday's game against the Panthers.

The Falcons' starter when all quarterbacks are healthy isn't clear because there hasn't been a point in which all quarterbacks have been healthy. When Tagovailoa was named the starter, Penix wasn't healthy enough to play in games. Now that Penix is healthy enough to play, Tagovailoa isn't yet ready to be active.

For the time being, Rush and Strand will operate behind Penix on the depth chart, with Rush potentially on the chopping block once Tagovailoa is back to full health.

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Is Tua Tagovailoa injured?

Tagovailoa suffered an oblique strain in practice before Week 1 and is still recovering from the injury.

Ahead of Week 3, coach Kevin Stefanski said Tagovailoa continues to make progress but added that the team would still need to "work through what that means for this week," meaning the quarterback's practice status was uncertain.

It's unclear whether Tagovailoa would start for the Falcons if both he and Penix were healthy, but Penix's availability means he will have the opportunity to entrench himself as the starter if he plays well.

For Tagovailoa, who is on a one-year contract, the question could become whether he will ever make a start for the Falcons if Penix earns the full-time job.