The Atlanta Falcons are getting set for the 2026 season after making a final decision on who their starting quarterback is going to be for Week 1 after a summer of questions.

Ultimately, Michael Penix Jr. is simply not ready from a health standpoint after just getting cleared to return to practice fully a couple of weeks ago. As a result, Tua Tagovailoa is going to begin the season and unless he plays well and the team is winning games, will likely serve as a placeholder for a couple of weeks for Penix.

The thought from many is that unless Penix does return and completely prove he is this team's quarterback of the future, that guy may not currently be on the team and the Falcons could be going shopping next offseason. If things do play out that way, one name who folks were talking about this summer as a possibility just came off the board days before the season with hated division rival Baker Mayfield agreeing to a significant three-year extension with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Mayfield and Tampa Bay were at odds at the start of training camp with the quarterback even publicly declaring that he was not happy with the situation. With his contract set to expire, it seemed Mayfield was destined to hit free agency and sign elsewhere next offseason, but clearly, cooler heads have now prevailed.

This is notable because not only is Mayfield no longer an option for the Falcons, but it also means Atlanta will still have to face him twice a year for the foreseeable future. As a guy who has historically played well against the Falcons, stealing him away from a division rival and finding a potential franchise quarterback in the process would have been an absolutely epic move.

Now, Atlanta has one less option between free agency and the draft if things do not pan out long-term for the current set of quarterbacks on the roster. Whether or not Mayfield to the Falcons ever would have become reality is now never going to be known, but it certainly would have been a fascinating storyline if it ever did come to fruition.

Atlanta will see Mayfield for the first time in Week 8 on the road in Tampa Bay and the home game will not be until Week 16 as the Falcons close the season with three straight divisional rivals beginning with the Buccaneers.