The NFL world is going to turn up a notch with free agency officially opening up. Teams will be looking to make some splashes in free agency to improve their roster ahead of the 2025 season.
The Atlanta Falcons will use free agency as an avenue to get better as well, but they have a big question to answer around quarterback Kirk Cousins' future. Atlanta is reportedly open to bringing him back as their QB2 in 2025.
While it's uber important to have a solid backup quarterback, Cousins won't be cheap. He has a base salary of $27.5 million with a roster bonus of $10 million in 2025.
With Michael Penix Jr. the future in Atlanta, Cousins is looking to head elsewhere. According to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer, Cousins met with owner Arthur Blank on Wednesday and told him he would like to get traded to a team where he could start.
While there are no guarantees that Atlanta will honor this request, they could have the perfect landing spot for Cousins. On Friday, the Seattle Seahawks traded QB Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders for a third-round pick.
With no starting QB in the fold currently with the Seahawks, they could be a landing spot for Cousins.
Geno Smith is being traded to Las Vegas Raiders for a third round pick, per sources. pic.twitter.com/vmdvtueBgE
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 7, 2025
Although Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported that people around the league expect the Seahawks to sign Sam Darnold to a multi-year deal in free agency, nothing is guaranteed.
If the Seahawks miss out on Darnold, Cousins could be a solid fallback option for them and would give him the runway to be their starter in 2025.
Seattle went 10-7 in 2024 and narrowly missed the postseason. With them losing Smith, they may want to bring in a veteran voice who can be their bridge quarterback. With another year removed from his Achilles tear, there's a good chance that he'll look more like the player he was with the Minnesota Vikings compared to Atlanta.
In his 13-year career, Cousins has gone 83-74-2 as a starter. He has gone 3,768 of 5,630 (66.9%) for 42,979 passing yards with 288 passing touchdowns and 126 interceptions.
He still believes he can be a solid starter in the NFL, and Seattle could be the ideal landing spot if they fail to agree to terms with Darnold in free agency.