Kirk Cousins’ Falcons exit options ‘dwindling’ with just two trade doors left open

Kirk Cousins was supposed to be the Atlanta Falcons’ answer at quarterback, at least for the next two years dating back to last season. While his 2024 campaign started solidly, it quickly took a nosedive with the Falcons missing the playoffs yet again.

First-round, No. 8 overall pick Michael Penix Jr.—who the Falcons surprised many by selecting in last year’s draft—was supposed to be the future. However, the future started much sooner than expected.

Penix started the last three games for Atlanta, with Cousins riding the bench. That could now become a mainstay for the veteran unless the Falcons can find a suitable trade partner for him.

Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, however, says those options are “dwindling,” especially now that the draft has concluded.

The draft, as Breer wrote, was one of three deadlines likely to determine if Cousins would be traded. The first was March 15, when Cousins received a fully guaranteed 2026 roster bonus of $10 million. The second was the draft. The final deadline is late July when training camps open.

Considering the post-draft fallout, Breer says Cousins has only two realistic options remaining. The first is the Pittsburgh Steelers; the second would require a team desperate to replace an injured quarterback.

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“Realistically, at this point, it seems like the two possible exit doors for Cousins open if the Steelers don’t land Rodgers or another quarterback gets hurt somewhere,” Breer wrote. “But even if there’s an injury, it’d have to happen before the trade deadline. And there’s a chance that Cousins wouldn’t want to uproot his family—and could thus block a trade if he doesn’t like the destination.”

One of those earlier options was the Vikings, but their newly acquired quarterback Sam Howell taking Cousins’ former No. 8 jersey seemed to symbolically signal the end of any reunion in Minnesota.

At this point, it appears Cousins will be backing up Penix—albeit while making nearly $30 million in the process.

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