The Atlanta Falcons, along with several other teams across the league, are beginning OTAs this week, which is the next phase of the offseason.
OTAs are an excellent opportunity for head coach Raheem Morris and the rest of the coaching staff to check out the entire 90-man roster, which includes the incoming rookie class. However, one veteran is missing from the Falcons’ first OTA practice.
According to Will McFadden of AtlantaFalcons.com, Morris told reporters that he had not seen veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins on Tuesday, with the first OTA practice set to get underway.
This is surprising from Cousins, given that the veteran quarterback was at the team’s voluntary workouts last month. Maybe he will show up on Tuesday, or even later during OTAs. But his potential absence certainly creates even more drama around a situation that's been full of it.
The Falcons brought in Cousins last offseason in hopes that he would lead Atlanta to the playoffs in 2024. However, that did not come to fruition as the Falcons fell short with Penix Jr. under center, who replaced Cousins with three games left in the 2024 campaign.
Nonetheless, the Falcons are okay with the 36-year-old Cousins as the backup behind second-year QB Michael Penix Jr. However, you have to imagine that Cousins doesn’t like the idea of being a backup in 2025.
In fact, Morris told reporters at the NFL’s Annual League Meeting in April that the Falcons would not hold Cousins back from a starting opportunity if it presented itself.
Those opportunities haven’t appeared yet, and it's unlikely as there’s only one team without a starting quarterback, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and it looks like Aaron Rodgers could be going there.
Therefore, the veteran quarterback is stuck in Atlanta until something else materializes. That said, it will be interesting to see if Cousins shows up at OTAs, as the Falcons have a couple more practices slated for Wednesday, Friday, and the first week of June.