As training camp for the Atlanta Falcons is set to begin this week, the front office has a glaring issue to deal with. GM Terry Fontenot has his hands full now, like most general managers in the later parts of July, but the handling of the Kirk Cousins situation is front and center. Offloading the veteran gunslinger may be the best option for Atlanta.
It would not be much of a shock to find out Raheem Morris would prefer a quieter backup QB situation, and Cleveland could be the best possible trade partner for that reason. With veteran and former Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco and recent Super Bowl winner as a backup, Kenny Pickett, on the roster, the Browns have the capital to make the deal worthwhile for the Falcons.
Practical options that have seen their window for a Cousins close are the Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Giants, and Las Vegas Raiders, all teams that were looking for veteran experience at the position but have sealed up the personnel needed to enter the season.
Other options remain, including a possible reunion with the Vikings, or the Jets, who added Justin Fields this offseason. While Fields remains the presumptive starter entering the season, there has been chatter that the recent AFC East bottom-feeder could be a destination for the Michigan State alum.
Cousins, who was a 4th round pick by Washington in 2012, has racked up 42,979 passing yards and 288 touchdowns over his 13-season career with Washington and the Minnesota Vikings before signing a four-year, $180 million contract with the Falcons in the 2024 offseason. The highly publicized fallout of the events that followed, including Cousins' perspective displayed on the Netflix series Quarterback, has created a public relations firestorm that is likely to creep its way into the press room as camp is set to kick off.
It remains to be seen what the Falcons’ front office will do with Cousins, but they do not have to rush anything. With camp breaking out across the league this week, there may soon be a shift in personnel situations on other teams through inevitable injuries. The Falcons could sit on Cousins long enough to find a desperate contender willing to take on the contract that Cousins would bring with him.