The Atlanta Falcons are bringing in Andy Dalton as quarterback insurance and letting Cooper Rush go to make room, Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport reported on Monday, October 19, a day after a 31-23 home loss to the Chicago Bears left Atlanta at 2-4.
The club had not announced either move by late Monday morning. Until it does, the signing and the release stand as reported, not confirmed.
Veteran free-agent QB Andy Dalton is signing with the Atlanta Falcons, per sources. pic.twitter.com/fbRmoZlfx9
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 19, 2026
Dalton, 38, has been a free agent since the Philadelphia Eagles released him on Friday, October 9. He had won Philadelphia’s backup job in the summer after arriving from Carolina in a March trade, and threw one pass for the Eagles this season, which was intercepted. Schefter reported that Dalton had more than one landing spot available, including a return to Philadelphia, where Jalen Hurts went on injured reserve over the weekend. He picked Atlanta.
Why Atlanta wanted another arm
No team has leaned on its quarterback room harder. Rush opened the season as the starter because Michael Penix Jr. was still working back from a torn ACL and Tua Tagovailoa had an oblique injury. Atlanta managed 16 points across those first two games, the lowest total in the league, and Rush was pulled for undrafted rookie Jack Strand during the Week 2 loss to Carolina. In his two starts Rush threw two interceptions in each game.
Penix has started since, but his ribs have been a worry. He could not finish the Week 5 overtime loss to Baltimore, and Tagovailoa’s interception in the extra period ended that game. On Sunday Penix played the whole way against Chicago, going 19 of 33 for 225 yards and three touchdowns, but he was sacked five times and lost a fumble on Atlanta’s last possession. He said afterward that the ribs were not a problem.
With Rush gone, the room is Penix, Tagovailoa, Strand and Dalton. The likeliest role for the newcomer is as the experienced No. 2 behind Penix, though nothing about the pecking order has been announced.
A long résumé
Dalton was Cincinnati’s starter from 2011 through 2019, then moved through Dallas, Chicago, New Orleans and Carolina, where he made seven starts between 2023 and 2025. Across 16 seasons he has started 169 games and won 84 of them, with 39,793 passing yards, 254 touchdown passes and 152 interceptions while completing 62.6 percent of his throws. If he takes a snap for Atlanta, he will be the fifth quarterback the club has used in 2026.
What comes next
The Falcons stay at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, October 25, at 1:00 p.m. EDT. Every roster move is tracked on the WhyNFL transactions page.
No published comments yet. Start the conversation.