The Falcons have a lot to do this offseason but first on the to-do list for Terry Fontenot is Kirk Cousins.
Atlanta’s GM maintains that the club is comfortable with Cousins being Michael Penix Jr.’s backup, but the collection of rumors and reports suggest they’ll look to offload his contract by trading him. Of course, they’ll need Cousins’ approval because of his no-trade clause.
The preference is obviously for the Falcons to trade Kirk Cousins, which would bring the most financial relief. If not, your guess is as good as mine. I still believe the Falcons will cut Cousins, but if they’re serious about holding his feet to the fire, there’s an artificial deadline for something to come to fruition, and it comes with a $10 million price tag.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported during Sunday’s SportsCenter that the Falcons and Cousins have a March 17th deadline to decide, which is when his $10 million roster bonus is due.
“Cousins’$27.5 million salary is guaranteed for this year. So he’s on Atlanta’s books. He’s the backup quarterback right now behind Penix. Something there has to shake out,” he said, via Bleacher Report. “The NFL Scouting Combine is in about a week-and-a-half, I expect Atlanta and Cousins’ agent to talk about the future, see what they can shake out. You know, the New York Jets, once upon a time, wanted to sign Cousins. He’s going to be one of the best options. He’s recovered from his Achilles tear. And he’s got a roster bonus due in March of $10 million, so that’s sort of an artificial deadline for him to find a new team that should shake out.”
I still believe the Falcons will eventually cut Kirk Cousins, but would anyone be surprised if the organization is actually serious about being comfortable with the most expensive backup in the league? You shouldn’t be.
Would the Jets actually be interested in trading for Kirk Cousins? I can’t really see why. They had a better quarterback — Aaron Rodgers — under contract and have elected to pay $49 million for him not to be their quarterback. Would they really be interested in acquiring Cousins and his $27.5 million salary? Sure, the Falcons could eat some of that money, but it doesn’t make much sense.
The only thing Cousins provides that Rodgers doesn’t is the intangible aspect of being a consummate professional. Is that really worth the $60+ million it would cost to get rid of Rodgers and trade for Cousins? I doubt it. Maybe New York is interested in the Falcons veteran signal caller on a minimum deal after he’s released, but a trade with the Jets feels highly unlikely.
—
Photographer: David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire
You must log in to post a comment.