Cousins is expected to be cut by the Falcons before his $10 million roster bonus is due March 17, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports. Cousins has been demoted to the backup role behind rookie first-round pick Michael Penix ahead of Atlanta's Week 16 game against the Giants. The veteran quarterback lost his starting role after posting a 1:9 TD:INT in his last five starts. Cousins signed a four-year, $180 million contract with the Falcons prior to the 2024 season, but Atlanta appears ready to move forward with Penix while eating the remainder of Cousins' $100 million guarantee.
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Status
ACTIVELatest Kirk Cousins news
Team
Atlanta Falcons
Birthdate
8/19/1988 (36)
Status
Active
HT/WT
6'3", 205 lbs
Draft Info
2012: Rd 4; Pk (WAS)
Birthplace
Barrington, IL, USA
Position
QB
College
Michigan State
Experience
13 seasons
Career History
Atlanta Falcons
2024-Present
(1 season)
Minnesota Vikings
2018-2024
(6 seasons)
Washington Commanders
2012-2018
(6 seasons)
Cousins is expected to be cut by the Falcons before his $10 million roster bonus is due March 17, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports. Cousins has been demoted to the backup role behind rookie first-round pick Michael Penix ahead of Atlanta's Week 16 game against the Giants. The veteran quarterback lost his starting role after posting a 1:9 TD:INT in his last five starts. Cousins signed a four-year, $180 million contract with the Falcons prior to the 2024 season, but Atlanta appears ready to move forward with Penix while eating the remainder of Cousins' $100 million guarantee.
Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said Wednesday that Cousins will serve as the team's No. 2 quarterback behind rookie Michael Penix in Sunday's game against the Giants, D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. On Tuesday, Morris announced that Penix would take over as Atlanta's starter, but it wasn't immediately known if Cousins would serve as his direct backup, or if the Falcons would elevate Nathan Peterman from the practice squad to handle those duties. Rather than making Cousins a healthy inactive, Atlanta will continue to have the veteran signal-caller suit up on game days, even though the Falcons are now turning the offense over to the rookie first-round pick. Cousins' long-term future in Atlanta is another matter, as the 36-year-old is being benched just 14 games into the four-year, $180 million contract he inked with the Falcons this offseason. Through those 14 appearances, Cousins has completed 303 of 453 pass attempts (67 percent) for 3,508 yards, 16 touchdowns and a league-high 16 interceptions. Nine of those interceptions came over Cousins' most recent five starts, during which he threw for just one touchdown.
Atlanta announced Tuesday that Michael Penix will be the team's starting quarterback moving forward, displacing Cousins in the role. Cousins struggled over the Falcons' past five games, posting a 1:9 TD:INT while the team went 1-4. Though the squad snapped a four-game losing streak Monday against the Raiders, Cousins didn't do well, completing 11 of 17 passes for 112 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Head coach Raheem Morris was non-committal about the veteran quarterback continuing to start under center for the squad earlier Tuesday, and the Falcons later made the announcement that Penix will be taking over as the team's starting signal-caller. Per Tori McElhaney of the Falcons' official site, Morris said in a prepared statement, "This was a football decision and we are fully focused on preparing the team for Sunday's game against the New York Giants." It's unclear what Cousins' future in Atlanta will be after signing a four-year, $180 million contract in the offseason.
Head coach Raheem Morris was non-committal Tuesday when asked if Cousins will remain the Falcons' starting quarterback for Sunday's game against the Giants, Josh Kendall of The Athletic reports. "We just got back [from Las Vegas]. We still have to go through that process," Morris said. "All those things will happen over the course of the week. We didn't play well enough at the quarterback position." Though the Falcons snapped their four-game losing streak Monday with a 15-9 win over the Raiders, Cousins' play didn't inspire much confidence in the prospects of the Atlanta offense moving forward. After Cousins had turned in a disastrous 0:8 TD:INT during the previous four games, the Falcons leaned heavily on the ground attack in Week 16, attempting 37 runs on the night. Cousins was unable to do much with his 20 dropbacks, taking three sacks and completing 11 of 17 pass attempts for 112 yards, one touchdown and NFL-leading 16th interception of the season. Though a soft home matchup against the 2-12 Giants awaits in Week 16, the 7-7 Falcons may view the game as a good opportunity to see if rookie first-round pick Michael Penix can provide an upgrade over the struggling Cousins as Atlanta looks to stay in the thick of the NFC playoff race. Expect Morris to provide an update on the Falcons' plans at quarterback Wednesday, when the team resumes practicing.
Cousins completed 11 of 17 passes for 112 yards with a touchdown and an interception and netted no gain on three rush attempts in the Falcons' 15-9 win over the Raiders on Monday night. He also committed a fumble but recovered. Cousins' numbers were hardly of the redemptive variety after a four-game stretch that may have had his starting job in danger, but the veteran signal-caller at least snapped his four-game touchdown drought with a 30-yard first-quarter scoring strike to Drake London. Cousins ultimately wasn't tasked with doing much more against an inept Raiders offense helmed by Desmond Ridder, leading to his lowest passing yardage total of the campaign. Cousins may enjoy a similar game script in a Week 16 home matchup against the lowly Giants, who also should pose very little threat.
Head coach Raheem Morris said Monday that Cousins remains Atlanta's starting quarterback heading into a road matchup against the Raiders on Dec. 16, Terrin Waack of the Falcons' official site reports. Morris said Cousins "is the guy who is going to lead us" heading into a primetime matchup against Las Vegas next Monday night, reaffirming the notion that Atlanta still isn't considering allowing rookie first-round pick Michael Penix even a spot start. Still, the Falcons now have lost four consecutive games, a span in which Cousins has thrown eight interceptions without a single touchdown. During Minnesota's 42-21 loss to the Vikings on Sunday, Cousins completed just 23 of his 37 pass attempts for 344 yards, no touchdowns and two INTs. If Atlanta's passing game were to struggle notably against the Raiders in prime time, Morris' current level of commitment to Cousins could shift.
Cousins completed 23 of 37 passes for 344 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions in the Falcons' 42-21 loss to the Vikings on Sunday. Making his return to Minnesota, Cousins' afternoon started off in fine fashion when he helmed an 11-play, 70-yard drive that culminated in a Tyler Allgeier six-yard touchdown run on the game's opening possession. However, the Vikings' aggressive defense progressively began figuring out its former teammate, allowing just three additional points during the rest of the first half with the help of one of two interceptions off Cousins during the afternoon. Cousins faltered again with just under six and a half minutes remaining, overshooting Kyle Pitts on a red-zone throw for a second pick that essentially snuffed out any hopes of an Atlanta comeback. Cousins did compile enough completions after the game was out of reach to eclipse the 300-yard mark for his third time as a Falcon, but he'll head into a Week 15 road matchup against the Raiders with an 0:8 TD:INT in his last four games. Despite the abysmal stretch of play, D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that head coach Raheem Morris confirmed after the game that "Kirk Cousins is our quarterback" when asked about the possibility of affording rookie signal-caller Michael Penix a spot start.
Falcons coach Raheem Morris was emphatic when speaking with Fox NFL Sunday's Jay Glazer that no quarterback change was imminent between Cousins and Michael Penix. Morris reiterated that Cousins' Achilles is not the cause of his recent struggles, which have seen him throw zero touchdowns and six interceptions over his last three games. He did say that Cousins was sore all over, but that they worked on his maintenance over the week of practice. Meanwhile, Fox colleague Peter Schraeger reported that Penix didn't take any first-team reps in practice this week, buttressing Glazer's report.
Cousins completed 24 of 39 passes for 245 yards with no touchdowns and four interceptions in the Falcons' 17-13 loss to the Chargers on Sunday. He also rushed once for three yards and committed a fumble recovered by Atlanta. Cousins was able to move the ball well over the Falcons' first two drives on the way to helping Atlanta to 10 points, but his troubles began on the third possession when he tossed his first interception of the afternoon at the Chargers' 29-yard line. Cousins was able to help lead another pair of scoring marches the rest of the way, both which culminated in field goals, and his three second-half picks, including a pick-six and another that came at Los Angeles' 24-yard line with 47 seconds remaining, doomed any hopes of a comeback. Cousins has now thrown six interceptions without a touchdown pass in the last three games, and his assignment remains just as tough in a Week 14 road matchup against his old Vikings squad.