The Kirk Cousins era will be one Falcons fans would like to quickly forget. He signed for $180 million with $90 million in guarantees and only made it through 14 games before being benched in favor of Michael Penix Jr. Over his last five games in a Falcons uniform, he went 1-4, throwing only one touchdown with nine interceptions, allowing the Bucs to come from three games back and take a lead in the NFC South.
On the field, there’s absolutely no reason for Falcons fans to remember Kirk Cousins fondly, but his professionalism during these trying times makes him difficult for anybody to dislike.
In the face of adversity and, frankly, embarrassment, Cousins has reminded everybody that, above all else, he is a professional. He’s taken Michael Penix Jr. under his wing and is doing everything in his power to ensure he is successful. That might seem like the bare minimum, but there are a lot of quarterbacks that have come before him that would not have done the same.
The experience Michael Penix Jr. has received from Kirk Cousins is invaluable. Cousins has forgotten more about football than Penix has learned up to this point. There is very little chance Penix leads the Falcons to the postseason without Cousins’ mentorship and even more than that, he’s much better set up for success now that he’s spent an entire season in the building with a veteran that has experienced everything this game has to offer.
On the field, $90 million for Kirk Cousins’ middling performance over 14 games can be viewed as nothing other than an unmitigated disaster. But his mentoring of Penix could end up being worth much more than that, which is a testament to who he is as a person and a professional.
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Photographer: David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire
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