The Atlanta Falcons benching Week 1 beginning quarterback Kirk Cousins in favor of 2024 first-round draft decide Michael Penix Jr. in December seemingly sparked the beginning of the end of Cousins’ Atlanta tenure.
Throughout a Tuesday morning look on NFL Community, Cousins addressed his future within the league.
“I undoubtedly really feel like I’ve numerous good soccer left in me,” Cousins mentioned, as shared by Jeremy Bergman of the NFL’s web site. “Time will inform. It is nonetheless sort of unsure. We’ll get to March and know much more. However I feel the main target for me actually is getting wholesome. That is actually my focus is I gotta get wholesome.”
Cousins was nonetheless recovering from the torn Achilles he suffered in October 2023 when he signed a four-year, $180M contract that included $100M assured to hitch the Falcons final March. The veteran, who turned 36 years outdated in August, later hinted he would’ve made a special alternative in free company had he recognized that the Falcons would choose Penix with the eighth general decide of the 2024 draft.
Whereas Cousins helped the Falcons get to 6-3, analysts famous that he finally regarded “out of gas” weeks earlier than he was relegated to QB2 duties forward of Christmas. Falcons common supervisor Terry Fontenot considerably surprisingly said after Atlanta missed the playoffs that he’d be “very snug transferring ahead with [Cousins] as a backup,” however logic suggests everyone concerned in all probability wants a clear break.
“I am no good to the Falcons, I am no good to a staff if I am not feeling actually good,” Cousins continued. “That is actually the place my focus has been by January and February now that the season has wound down, actually taking on a regular basis I can to get my physique feeling actually good.”
Per Pro Football Reference, Cousins ranked twenty eighth with a 50.4 adjusted QBR and twenty third with an 88.6 passer ranking for the marketing campaign. He tossed 18 landing passes together with a league-high (tied with Baker Mayfield of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) 16 interceptions over 14 video games.
Groups in want of a so-called “bridge” beginning quarterback such because the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants are anticipated to pursue Cousins assuming he turns into obtainable. It feels like he’ll need to not less than compete for a QB1 job as soon as he absolutely recovers from physical setbacks that affected him this previous fall.
“Now that the season’s over, you’ve got the time and the power to say, OK, let’s get the appropriate ankle again, let’s get the shoulder again, let’s get the elbow again, and if we will do this, [I] really feel like I received a brand new life forward of me in professional soccer,” he added.
