After a failed try and be released ahead of free agency, Kirk Cousins is now in no rush to force a move out of Atlanta. He’s planning to attend until after the draft before waiving his no-trade clause to facilitate a deal, per Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer.
The Falcons held onto Cousins long enough for $10MM of his 2026 salary to vest right into a full guarantee and have signaled their willingness to maintain him as an expensive backup this season. He would favor to seek out a starting job elsewhere, though he’s wary of a repeat of last yr’s situation in Atlanta. The Falcons signed Cousins to a four-year, $160MM deal in March and drafted Michael Penix with the eighth overall pick six weeks later. That put pressure on the 13-year veteran to live as much as his contract while making it clear that he was not the team’s long-term quarterback.
When Cousins hit a patch of rough play in December, the Falcons benched him for Penix, effectively ending the 36-year-old’s tenure in Atlanta after 14 games. In 2025, he doesn’t need a highly drafted rookie respiratory down his neck. That will be a risk along with his two most probably suitors, the Browns and the Giants, who hold the second and third overall picks in April’s draft. After years of instability under center, each teams have been repeatedly linked with the draft’s top two quarterbacks, Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders.
Cousins’ willingness to attend on a trade should work for his potential suitors. The Browns and the Giants can do their due diligence on Ward, Sanders, and even Jaxson Dart and let the draft play out. The Steelers are considered a “protected bet” to land Aaron Rodgers, but when that doesn’t work out, they may inquire about Cousins, in response to Breer. Nonetheless, Pittsburgh will want to see if a top quarterback falls inside range of a trade up from the twenty first overall pick.
Cousins would only waive his no-trade clause prior to the draft if his latest team commits to not using a first-round pick on quarterback, in response to Breer. That condition will not be amenable to front offices in Cleveland and Latest York which are searching for a long-term franchise quarterback.
It’s possible that the Browns have a look at a talented roster besieged by injuries last yr and judge that trading for Cousins and using the No. 3 pick on an impact receiver or edge rusher is sufficient to compete within the AFC North. That doesn’t seem likely for the Giants, who’ve more holes to fill on their roster. They’ve also signaled a desire so as to add one other veteran and draft a quarterback in the primary round, even after signing Jameis Winston.
Cousins’ approach does involve some risk. If the Browns, Giants, and Steelers all solidify their quarterback situations by the tip of the draft, he could also be left with none suitors headed into the summer. That will leave him stuck in Atlanta as Penix’s backup with a $27.5MM salary that could possibly be a barrier to a trade.
The Falcons would already be absorbing $37.5MM in dead cap space ($12.5MM in 2025 and $25MM in 2026) in the event that they moved Cousins. Eating some or all of his 2025 salary would push their costs to $90MM for only one yr and 14 starts from Cousins, a position Falcons owner Arthur Blank would favor to avoid, in response to Breer.
That can, after all, impact how much draft compensation teams will surrender to amass Cousins. A trade out of Atlanta to a team with a starting job available stays his desired end result, but it surely seems other dominoes can have to fall first.
