FLOWERY BRANCH, GEORGIA - MAY 14: Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. #9 of the Atlanta Falcons listens to quarterback Kirk Cousins #18 during OTA offseason workouts at the Atlanta Falcons training facility on May 14, 2024 in Flowery Branch, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
The talk all offseason has been centered around how the Atlanta Falcons are going to find a way to move on from quarterback Kirk Cousins. Not a single week has gone by without new potential trade packages circulating. But now, as mandatory training camp begins, here stands Kirko Chains in the red and black.
Kirk addressed the media today and his tone has completely changed. In previous meetings, his quotes were headlined by comments about finding a new team and continually stating there were no hard feelings about the way things ended in Atlanta. Today Cousins talked about moving on together and his future with the team.
“We’re moving forward,” Cousins said, “and it’s about how we as a team and as a quarterback room can be the best we can be in 2025.”
This is a stark change in the tides just two weeks removed from the 36-year-old veteran making headlines two weeks ago for not attending OTAs.
Obviously, there’s no surprise that the classy veteran is taking a team first approach. But this seems like he may be laying it on a little thick, even for him.
“Right now it’s being in the situation I am in and being the best I can. And hopefully in February, we — as an organization — are holding up the Lombardi Trophy,” Cousins said. “And how we do that is more important as a team that we do that, some way, some how. That’s where the focus has to be: That we as an organization win a championship and each one of us individually has to do our part in that to get there.”
Morris Says He Has Zero Concerns With Kirk
As previously stated, it’s no secret that Kirk Cousins is a stand-up guy. The kind of guy any team would like to have in their locker room. Head Coach Raheem Morris shared this sentiment with the media after it became apparent that, at least for the time being, the old man isn’t going anywhere.
“Kirk is not in the business of disrupting Michael Penix,” Morris assured. “Kirk has a great appreciation for the player Michael is. He has a great appreciation for the person that he is. I don’t have worries about those things. That only happens when you have a lack of communication, when there’s a void in the communication, and we just don’t have those things.”
Morris went on to praise Kirk for the ‘man he is’ and Penix himself even got in on the action, saying ‘we support each other and that’s how its always going to be’. Our colleague Micah Warren covered the reaction inside the building and more, you can read that here.
Making Sense Out Of Kirk’s Contract
I’m sure if you hit general manager Tony Fontenot with a truth ray, he would tell you that they would love to get out of Cousins’ $37.5 million contract. But that doesn’t seem to be in the cards.
But with some good old fashioned optimism, you’ll see why it isn’t exactly the worst thing in the world. First of all, they have the best backup quarterback in the NFL. That’s gotta count for something.
Secondly, at just $5.7 million a year, their actual starting quarterback is one of the cheapest in the league. With a bottom five attribution of cap going to their first string signal caller, over paying a back up kind of evens out.
So, while it certainly isn’t ideal, I truly believe this isn’t the worst thing in the world.