Michael Penix Jr. will be the Atlanta Falcons starting quarterback in 2025, leaving Kirk Cousins with an uncertain future less than a year after he signed a four-year, $180 million contract. With the NFL quarterback carousel underway, one particular outcome feels inevitable for Cousins.
Atlanta has already expressed interest in potentially retaining Cousins for the 2025 season as a veteran backup behind Penix. However, the quarterback’s cap hit and his frustration with the organization that bailed on him so quickly make that basically impossible.
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- Kirk Cousins stats (ESPN):Â 3,506 passing yards, 18-16 TD-INT, 66.9% completion rate, 7.7 yards per attempt, 88.6 QB rating
It puts the Falcons front office in a situation where they’ll need to bite the financial bullet and move on from Cousins this offseason. There are multiple teams in the market for a veteran starter and multiple clubs will have an interest in the 36-year-old. However, even that outcome appears highly unlikely.
Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated covered the situation in-depth, explaining his belief that the Falcons will eventually have to release Cousins. That’s because Atlanta can’t afford to keep him on the roster and Cousins is disgruntled enough with the franchise that he can use his no-trade clause to prevent the Falcons from moving him elsewhere.
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- Kirk Cousins contract (Spotrac):Â $40 million cap hit in 2025
Once Cousins is released, Breer believes the Los Angeles Rams and Cleveland Browns could be the top landing spots. Cleveland is too tight against the NFL salary cap to land someone like Sam Darnold or Aaron Rodgers and the Rams could be in the quarterback market if they pull the trigger on a Matthew Stafford trade with 4 NFL teams already pursuing the Rams’ veteran.
Cousins is reportedly looking to play for a team with a veteran play-caller, which both the Browns and Rams can offer. Because Atlanta would be paying most of his salary in 2025, he could also sign for close to the veterans’ minimum in 2025 to provide Los Angeles or Cleveland with one of the most cap-friendly starting quarterbacks in the NFL.
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While the Falcons will likely try and explore trading Cousins at the NFL Combine, teams around the league recognize that Atlanta will eventually have to release him. Once that happens, the Browns and Rams are two teams to monitor closely for his services.