The Atlanta Falcons benched marquee free-agent signing Kirk Cousins in favor of rookie Michael Penix Jr. for the last three weeks of the 2024 NFL season in a move that many believed signaled the end of the veteran’s short tenure in Atlanta.
However, Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot isn’t ruling out Cousins returning to the team in 2025 – as Penix’s backup.
‘We are very comfortable moving forward with [Cousins] as backup,’ Fontenot said at a news conference on Thursday. ‘Kirk is a great man and he’s been great support for Mike. We are very comfortable moving forward with him as the backup.’
It isn’t clear whether Cousins would feel similarly about that arrangement. While the 36-year-old understood why he was benched and made it a point to support Penix, he also indicated that he still wants to be a starter.
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‘I didn’t forget how to play quarterback,’ Cousins told reporters after his benching. ‘Certainly, the turnovers were not what you want, but I didn’t forget how to play.’
The complicating factor is Cousins’ contract. He inked a four-year, $180 million deal with the Falcons during the 2024 offseason that ties him to Atlanta through the 2027 season. The deal’s length was related to the Falcons’ play ‘for Kirk to play longer, and Mike to sit longer,’ as Fontenot outlined.
With the timeline now accelerated, the Falcons are now in a tough spot. They would have to eat $65 million in dead cap space to release him, per Spotrac.com, which is part of the reason the team wants to pick up an asset in exchange for Cousins, should the two sides part.
‘From what I understand, the Falcons are not just going to release him,’ NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe reported of Cousins. ‘They will listen to teams in regards to trade offers, but they want to get something back from that deal, and they’re willing to bring him back as a backup if it doesn’t happen that way.’
Cousins has a no-trade clause, so Atlanta’s ploy to bring him back as a backup may be a threat designed to convince him to waive it – should any team come calling about his potential as a starter. It could also be designed to convince teams to make offers for Cousins who may prefer to wait and see if the quarterback becomes a free agent.
Either way, it looks like Penix, the No. 8 pick in the 2024 NFL draft, will be the long-term starter for the Falcons. The bigger question about the team’s quarterback room this offseason will be whether Cousins will end up being a part of it.
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