The Atlanta Falcons have a lot of work to do this offseason. But first, they have to resolve the drama surrounding quarterback Kirk Cousins.
Cousins was signed to a four-year, $180 million contract that had its seeds planted at last year’s NFL Scouting Combine. The pact between the two sides lasted just 14 games before the 36-year-old was benched for Michael Penix Jr. and the expectation across the league is that Cousins will be traded or released before a $10 million roster bonus is due on March 17.
But Terry Fontenot has remained insistent that Cousins remains part of their future plans and that continued as he addressed local media at this year’s scouting combine on Tuesday in Indianapolis.
Terry Fontenot Insists Kirk Cousins Will Be Part of the Falcons in 2025
According to Atlanta Falcons senior reporter Tori McElhaney, Fontenot said his stance on Cousins’s future with the Falcons hasn’t changed since January and he expects Atlanta to move forward with Cousins as the backup to Penix next season.
Terry Fontenot said in a scrum with local media that the Falcons’ stance on Kirk Cousins and his future in ATL hasn’t changed since January, which is that the Falcons plan to move forward with Cousins as Michael Penix Jr.’s backup.
— Tori McElhaney (@tori_mcelhaney) February 25, 2025
Fonenot’s comments echo what he said last January when an ESPN report said the Falcons would release Cousins before his $10 million roster bonus is due next month. But although he called the report “unfounded,” it may be wishful thinking on a contract that has become one of the biggest mistakes in franchise history.
Less than a month after Cousins signed his massive contract, the Falcons took Penix with the eighth overall pick in the draft. Perhaps the Falcons envisioned Penix taking over the job as Cousins aged into his late-30s but the contract wasn’t structured that way with a $40 million cap hit for next season and matching $57.5 million cap hits in 2026 and 2027 according to Over The Cap.
More likely, Fontenot is trying to create a trade market for Cousins by insisting on the Falcons plan on keeping him. Trading Cousins before June 1 would generate $37.5 million in dead cap toward next season compared to the $65 million in dead money if he is released before June 1. Even if the Falcons wait until after June 1, it would generate $12.5 million in dead money via trade and $40 million in dead money in a release.
There’s also the issue of Cousins having a no-trade clause in his contract. Cousins could exercise that power similar to the way Derek Carr did when the Las Vegas Raiders tried to trade him after the 2022 season. Carr was ultimately released and signed with the New Orleans Saints.
Another key difference is that Cousins has offset language in his contract, meaning any money he would earn with another team in 2025 would count towards the dead money in Atlanta. Russell Wilson had a similar clause in his contract with the Denver Broncos and Denver was on the hook for a majority of his salary as he played with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
It shows that while Fontenot is trying to retain control of the situation, most of it is in the hands of Cousins. It could lead to a nasty standoff between the two sides before Cousins is set to receive his bonus next month.