Shortly after veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins was reportedly not spotted at the Atlanta Falcons’ opening day of organized team activities, head coach Raheem Morris made it known that 2024 first-round draft pick Michael Penix Jr. has been “finding his voice” as the club’s full-time starter.
For a piece published on Monday, NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated touched upon what Cousins has and hasn’t been amid his desire to leave the Falcons this spring.
“While the Cousins situation is still hovering, it’s sort of become an out-of-sight, out-of-mind thing for the people inside,” Breer said. “The veteran’s been around less than a handful of times this spring, as I’ve heard it, and has effectively blended in with the wallpaper when he has been in the building. Which is to say even if he’s not much help to Penix as it stands now, he’s certainly not a hindrance either.”
Outsiders may never know the whole story about why the Falcons made Penix the eighth overall pick of the 2024 draft less than two months after they signed Cousins to a four-year, $180M contract that included $100M guaranteed. The Falcons benched Cousins after Week 15 of the 2024 season due to poor play, and Penix is now Atlanta’s undisputed QB1 heading into training camp.
Some think the Falcons should want to get Cousins off the team to avoid any awkwardness that could arise if Penix plays poorly this coming September. There’s no indication as of the first Monday of June that Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot will release Cousins, and it seems Penix is doing well to win others inside the locker room over with the 36-year-old still on the roster.
“His teammates are solidly behind him,” Breer wrote about Penix, “Because he’s proven to be so football smart, the coaches believe in him.”
Assuming the Pittsburgh Steelers eventually sign Aaron Rodgers, as expected, it’s possible that the Falcons and Cousins will agree that he should stay away from the club and wait for a different team to possibly lose a starter to an injury before the in-season trade deadline arrives. Breer’s update suggests such a development could be what’s best for everybody involved as Atlanta gets Penix ready to serve as a first-time Week 1 starter.
