Tua Tagovailoa’s Instagram slip-up had the internet buzzing on Tuesday, but the mystery didn’t last long. The quarterback had posted a photo of himself in a Falcons jersey, then set off burner-account rumors when a comment from his own account appeared under the post. His wife, Annah, later stepped in to clear the air.
According to TMZ, Annah said she was the one behind the comment and simply forgot to switch accounts after posting on her husband’s behalf.
“No burner account! I was busy with the kids this morning and forgot to switch back to my work account,” Annah wrote in the IG post.
“He's busy at work as he's said he doesn't have social media and I post on his behalf! Will pay more attention next time.”
Former NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho also jumped in to defend Tagovailoa, saying the reaction was overblown and noting that plenty of players leave social media management to family members. He wrote, “Y'all chill out on Tua, a family member (likely his wife) runs his social media account.
Many athletes do this to protect their mental health, and insulate them from trolls,” Acho tweeted. “The family member didn't switch back to their personal account before showing Tua praise.”
The social media mix-up came as Tagovailoa’s football situation remains in flux. The Dolphins moved on from him in March after drafting him with the No. 5 pick in 2020. His time in Miami was shaped by multiple concussions over the past few seasons and a stretch of uneven play.
In 2024, Tagovailoa agreed to a four-year, $212.4 million extension with the Dolphins, but the team still missed the playoffs in each of the past two years. Last season, he threw for 2,660 yards and 20 touchdowns, and Miami finished third in the AFC East at 7-10.
A few days after his release, Tagovailoa landed with the Atlanta Falcons on a one-year deal worth $1.215 million. He’s hoping to push for the starting job, but his preseason showing didn’t exactly light up the room. In two appearances, he completed 10 of 13 passes for 117 yards and no touchdowns.
The Falcons still haven’t settled their QB1 picture for the upcoming season. Michael Penix Jr. was recently cleared for 11-on-11s after the ACL injury he suffered in November. On Thursday, general manager Ian Cunningham said the team will make its decision when “it's time to make the decision.”
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The Falcons found themselves pulled into a quarterback conversation they had nothing to do with directly, thanks to a speculative idea from Bleacher Reports Kristopher Knox. His proposed three-team structure would send Tua Tagovailoa to Cleveland, while Atlanta would be attached to the deal through Dillon Gabriel and a conditional 2027 first-round pick, a wrinkle that immediately puts the Falcons in the middle of a much broader debate about how teams sort out their quarterback futures.
It is still just an idea, not a move or even a confirmed negotiation, but it does speak to how the league tends to view Atlanta whenever quarterback speculation starts heating up. The article weighs the pros and cons for all sides, and for the Falcons, the real intrigue is less about what has happened and more about whether their name keeps surfacing in these kinds of discussions as front offices look for creative ways to reshape the position. [Read more 🡒]
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Now Tillman lands with the Saints, who had a clear need at receiver and can offer him a path to elevation from the practice squad. For Atlanta, it is a small but notable miss in the division, the kind that barely registers in August and can look different later if a rival turns a waiver pickup into something useful. [Read more 🡒]
Falcons Defense Gets A Needed Boost At The Perfect Time
Da'Shawn Hand was back on the practice field with the Falcons after missing most of training camp because of a leg injury, a welcome development for a defense that has been sorting through injuries and suspensions. Hand had been listed as questionable for Week 1, and his return at least gives Atlanta a better chance of having a veteran defensive lineman available when it opens the season.
For a group trying to hold up in the trenches, even one healthy body can matter, especially a player with Hands experience helping with depth and run defense. The Falcons still have work to do before game day, but getting him back in the mix gives the defensive front a little more stability at exactly the right time. [Read more 🡒]