The Falcons haven’t made any notable moves, unless you consider signing Divine Deablo a “notable” move, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been involved in notable moves.
The club shockingly released Grady Jarrett after talks about reworking his deal fell through. The Falcons stalwart immediately signed a free agent contract worth $43.5 million with the Bears. Joining him is Drew Dalman, who inked a three-year deal with Chicago as well.
The Falcons aren’t done by any means, adding or subtracting. The biggest domino is still Kirk Cousins, who could be leaving Atlanta as soon as this weekend. March 17 is a date to keep an eye on; it’s when Cousins’ $10 million roster bonus fully vests. If the Falcons cut him, it will likely be before then, at least that’s the thinking of a lot of people around the NFL.
In fact, Zac Jackson of The Athletic, a Browns beat reporter, said that Cousins will probably be in Cleveland “by the weekend.”
“Probably by the weekend, they’ll have Kirk Cousins. March 16 is when the Falcons owe him $10 million, and everybody expects they won’t pay him that. If they do, we’ll see what’s next, but probably Kirk Cousins, always have been the #1 plan,” Jackson said.
That’s a pretty confident statement, especially with how casually he said it during the radio interview. The Falcons are still clearly holding out hope that they’ll be able to trade him, but nobody in the league believes they’ll keep him.
Most recently, Cousins met with Falcons’ owner Arthur Blank, where he expressed his desire to be with a team where he can start in 2025.
“Sources: QB Kirk Cousins asked for, and got, a meeting with Falcons owner Arthur Blank on his future. Blank and Cousins had that meeting Wednesday night—the QB wants to go to a place where he can start in 2025. The Falcons brass has said it’d do what’s best for the team at QB,” Sports Illustrated insider Albert Breer wrote.
With quarterbacks, there’s never been 32-starting caliber signal callers in the league. If you believe that line of thinking, then you’d assume there will be a club willing to trade for Kirk Cousins. Of course, it’s a little more complicated than that because of his contract, but hopefully, the Falcons are able to convince someone to trade for the veteran. If it’s the Browns, that’s great.
—
Photographer: Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire
You must log in to post a comment.