Do teams believe Falcons could keep Kirk Cousins as backup for Michael Penix Jr.?

While Atlanta Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot suggested during the NFL Scouting Combine that he plans to keep quarterback Kirk Cousins as a backup behind Michael Penix Jr., Cousins reportedly could "start getting pushy" amid his desire to go elsewhere and before $10M of his money for 2026 vests on March 17.  

For a piece published on Tuesday, Falcons insider Josh Kendall of The Athletic shared that "no one" around the league believes Cousins will stay with the Falcons through the offseason largely because Penix is now atop the depth chart after the 2024 first-round draft pick replaced the veteran in the lineup this past December. 

"...The path the Falcons envision for Penix is less cluttered without Cousins around for the 2025 season," Kendall explained. "Everything in Cousins’ past says he would continue to embrace Penix and help him in any way he could, but Cousins still believes he can be/is a starting quarterback and human nature exists. What happens when Penix inevitably hits a rough patch in his second season and the Falcons have a quarterback with $100M in guaranteed money sitting right there ready to go? What happens if Penix twists his ankle and Cousins plays great in relief? What happens if some players in a locker room that genuinely liked Cousins start to think he got a raw deal? What happens if Penix peeks over his shoulder and wonders about any of these things?"

The New York Jets, New York Giants and Cleveland Browns are three clubs expected to pursue Cousins as a so-called bridge option at the position who will start ahead of a rookie for at least one season. Meanwhile, Kendall mentioned that the Falcons' "relationship with Cousins is strained after he reversed course during Super Bowl week and said he was injured in Week 10" of the 2024 campaign. 

The truth of the matter is that the partnership likely hasn't been the same since Atlanta signed Cousins in free agency last March but didn't give him "a heads up" at that time that the team could select a quarterback with the eighth overall pick of the 2024 draft.

Kendall pointed out that the Falcons could hope Cousins' trade value increases "in training camp or even during the season if a team finds itself in a bind because of a quarterback injury or underperformance." That's all well and good but ignores the fact that Cousins will want to find his next NFL home as soon as possible so he can learn a different offense and build chemistry with new teammates. 

As much as history shows Cousins will be a team-first player, logic suggests keeping a disgruntled 36-year-old who thinks he should be a starter in the same quarterback room as Penix probably isn't the best way for the 24-year-old to begin springtime workouts as a QB1 for the first time of his pro career. 

Thus, it's understandable that teams think the Falcons will give Cousins his desired freedom either before or shortly after the new league year opens on March 12.