What would it take for the Pittsburgh Steelers to land QB Kirk Cousins? While the organization still has eyes on Aaron Rodgers, there might come a point where Pittsburgh is forced to pivot. Wednesday, ESPN outlined four hypothetical trade scenarios to acquire him, including a deal with Pittsburgh. Here’s what analyst Ben Solak suggested.
“*Falcons get: 2026 sixth-round draft pick (can become a fifth-rounder with performance conditions)*
Steelers get: Cousins, cash considerations”
Pittsburgh wouldn’t need to give up much to land Cousins, who has been angling for a trade out of Atlanta all offseason. Signed to a four-year, $160 million contract one offseason ago, he was benched midway through the season for first-round rookie Michael Penix Jr. To date, the Falcons have shown a willingness to hold onto Cousins despite his protests, the 13th-year veteran even “pleading” with owner Arthur Blank to trade him, according to the ESPN article.
The complicating factor is Cousins’ large contract. The “cash considerations” Solak mentions, usually a baseball term (as in the Pirates have traded their best asset for “cash considerations”) refers to the Falcons eating a portion of Cousins’ salary.
“I’d imagine the Falcons are still willing to swallow $20 million — maybe even more — of his salary to get this deal done,” Solak wrote.
Hammering out that side of the trade, how much money Atlanta stays on the hook for, will be the biggest obstacle in getting any deal done for Cousins. The sixth-round pick is inoffensive, especially for a Pittsburgh team that could have upwards of 12 selections heading into next year’s draft. And dealing a sixth, even if it becomes a fifth, won’t hurt the Steelers’ capital should they try and trade up for a quarterback in 2026.
The question is simply if the Steelers would prefer to have Kirk Cousins as their starter or stick with Mason Rudolph. The PPG’s Gerry Dulac suggested the Steelers’ Plan B is sticking with Rudolph, seemingly taking a Cousins trade out of the equation. But national outlets like ESPN have kept the possibility of a Cousins deal firmly on the radar, perhaps in part because there’s seemingly no other place he could be traded to barring an injury occurring to another team. Still, ESPN’s article also outlines trade scenarios with the Cleveland Browns and Minnesota Vikings, the latter serving as a return to the team Cousins played for before signing with Atlanta.
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