The Atlanta Falcons have a big Kirk Cousins problem this offseason, and it's not going anywhere. All signs are pointing toward the Falcons struggling to find a trade for Cousins. In that scenario, they would have to make the decision of either cutting him or making him their backup QB.
Even though it sounds improbable at first, the idea of Cousins starting the season as the Falcons' QB2 is starting to gather steam.
However, The Athletic's Josh Kendall reported on Tuesday that people around the league aren't necessarily buying this possibility. The Falcons insider then pointed out that some people in Cousins' camp think that the team may be serious about this plan.
"During my first four days in Indianapolis, every single person I talked to about Cousins scoffed at the idea. I had to add the “almost” in the subhead above because of one conversation I had on Day 5 that suggested some people in Cousins’ camp are at least starting to wonder if the Falcons might actually carry out this bluff."Josh Kendall, The Athletic
This is in line with some of the recent reporting by the likes of Sportskeeda's Tony Pauline and the Boston Globe's Ben Volin. They both alluded to the possibility that the Falcons could keep Cousins on a renegotiated deal and have him mentor Michael Penix Jr.
Keeping Cousins on the roster will add a $10 million bonus to their books for 2026, and he will count $40 million toward the Falcons' cap in 2025. For a cash-strapped team like Atlanta, that is a ton of money to pay a backup. Kendall points out that the team is selling the argument that Cousins will count towards the salary cap even with a trade, so why not keep him as "the league's best backup quarterback" for that cap hit?
There are plenty of complicating factors in this decision. The main one is whether Cousins' camp is fine with the plan of sitting behind Penix Jr. all season. The veteran QB would presumably only approve this if there was no starting job for him elsewhere.
It may be too early to come to that decision with free agency and the draft looming, so we are going to have to wait and see where the Cousins saga takes us.