No, Kirk Cousins ​​would not have signed with the Falcons if he had known their draft plan

One of the first thoughts that came to my mind after the Falcons made quarterback Michael Penix Jr. the eighth overall pick in the 2024 draft was that Kirk Cousins ​​would not have signed with the Falcons six weeks ago if he knew they would be using such a key asset not on someone who would help him. On winning but on someone who will eventually replace him.

Finally, this question was posed to the cousins. His actual answer was a window into his true feelings.

“I don’t really deal with assumptions“It was the best he could muster.

If the answer was yes, there would be no reason to avoid the question. Hiding behind reluctance to answer hypothetical questions makes it easy to hide the answer if it’s anything other than “yes.”

The truth, at best, might have been something like: “Well, that would have made me ask a lot of questions, because it gave me the impression that we were completely in agreement on my desire to win the Super Bowl, and on myself.” “Having the opportunity to retire here.” At worst, the truth was: “No, no.”

Cousins ​​spoke in his introductory news conference about the importance of having the owner, general manager, coach and quarterback on the same page. Penix’s wording shows that Cousins ​​was not even in the same book.

If he had known that’s what they were going to do, Kirk probably would have stayed in Minnesota or gone somewhere else. At the very least, he wanted more protection and guarantees that he would stay with the team for at least two or three years.

As it currently stands, it can be traded after a year (or two) and reduced after two years. In theory, he could be traded after June 1 of this year with the same cap consequences as a pre-June 1 trade in 2025 — if the Falcons can convince the next team to raise the remaining $25 million to be paid in September. And December under the original signing bonus, and if they are willing to let him walk away with $25 million for nothing in return.

This is incredibly unlikely, but it’s not impossible either. All it takes is a serious injury to the quarterback (like Teddy Bridgewater in 2016) to spark the urgency of another team to make the Falcons an offer they’re willing to refuse.

Sure, he has a no-trade clause. And given what happened in the draft, he might welcome the opportunity to waive it, if it means he’ll be “the guy” on a new team, without someone hovering over his shoulder the entire time he’s on the team. This is exactly what will happen in Atlanta.