The Atlanta Falcons' 2024 offseason remains a mystery in how the team could be so sold on Michael Penix Jr. while paying Kirk Cousins top dollar. Despite the excitement for Penix, the situation remains a frustration that is of Atlanta's own creation. The team easily could have opted to bring in a bring quarterback like Carson Wentz or Joe Flacco if it didn't believe Penix was ready in Week 1. On the flip side, drafting a quarterback and paying top dollar for Cousins made sure you couldn't take full advantage of the rookie's contract.
Things were made even more complicated when it appeared that Cousins was demanding his way out of Atlanta. It was a short-lived demand with the team unwilling to eat a large portion of the quarterback's contract. Cousins didn't rework the deal and has given in to being Penix's backup and helping the Falcons in this capacity. It is the only decision left for a quarterback forced to face the reality that there simply wasn't a team willing to give him a starting role on his current contract.
Kirk Cousins is Still a Distraction for the Atlanta Falcons
Heading into training camp and preseason, the quarterback is going to remain a media distraction. Any hint of Penix having a rough day is going to lead to unfair speculation despite the team's clear stance on the issue. There is also the fact that Penix is far more talented and going to offer the team a superior option in almost every way aside from experience.
A trait that didn't help Cousins when the quarterback needed it most in the middle of imploding his team's season at the end of 2024. However, as frustrating as Kirk's return might be, the Falcons made the right call bringing back the veteran. Paying Cousins to play elsewhere never made sense when you can retain the veteran as an expensive fallback option.
If you're stuck paying the quarterback anyway, you might as well enjoy the benefits of having the veteran as a secondary option in case things go unexpectedly sideways. All of this adds up to the Falcons having a frustrating distraction that must be kept based on the team's poor decisions in the 2024 offseason.