The Atlanta Falcons-Kirk Cousins saga has had plenty of twists and turns this offseason. After only one season with the team, the relationship between the two sides has completely derailed. Cousins is trying to get out of Atlanta, but the Falcons don't have any financial incentive to release him. They went so far as to announce their desire to make the 36-year-old their backup QB behind Michael Penix Jr.
This makes the trade route the only possible scenario for Cousins to get out of town. However, landing spots for Cousins are dwindling at this point of the offseason. On Friday, the top potential suitor for Cousins went a different direction.
NFL News: Browns Sign QB Joe Flacco
The interesting part about the #Browns signing Joe Flacco isn’t how it affects their draft plans — it’s how it might impact the idea of trading for Kirk Cousins. Many around the league believed Cleveland could explore that after the draft, but with Flacco and Pickett now in the… https://t.co/Hn0QcEXxF1
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) April 11, 2025
Since the end of the 2024 season, the Cleveland Browns were considered one of the frontrunners to land Cousins. They had a glaring hole under center with Deshaun Watson's season-ending injury and Jameis Winston's departure in free agency. The only healthy QB on their roster was Kenny Pickett.
That is why many thought that the Browns could get desperate enough to trade for Cousins after the NFL Draft.
Instead, they decided to bring back a familiar face. Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, Cleveland is signing Joe Flacco to a one-year deal. The 40-year-old had a magical run with the Browns in the final stretch of the 2023 season, leading them to an improbable postseason berth.
His late-career emergence led the Indianapolis Colts to sign him in free agency last year but things didn't go according to the plan there for Flacco. Now, he gets another chance in Cleveland and he has the inside track to start under center to begin the 2025 season.
The Browns can still draft a QB in the first round in two weeks. Yet, it seems highly unlikely that they would trade for Cousins if they didn't.
This complicates matters for Cousins and the Falcons. The veteran QB wants to go somewhere where he can start, but whether that team exists anymore is an entirely different question.