Former NFL GM Drops Wild Prediction on Michigan State Legend
When Kirk Cousins signed a massive contract with the Atlanta Falcons last March, many had questions.
After all, Cousins was turning 36 years old and was coming off of a torn Achilles. Was it really wise to hand him a $180 million deal featuring $100 million in guaranteed money?
Well, the Falcons have found that out the hard way.
Atlanta has already benched the Michigan State Spartans legend in favor of rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr., almost certainly spelling the end of his brief tenure with the club.
So, where will Cousins — who is expected to be cut — go next?
Former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum has circled the Cleveland Browns as Cousins' top landing spot and has gone as far to say that the Browns will win the AFC North next season with the veteran signal-caller taking snaps.
“Kirk Cousins will lead the Cleveland Browns to the AFC North Division title,” Tannenbaum said during his appearance on ESPN's "First Take" this week. “To me, this one’s really easy, because you reunite [Cousins] with [Browns head coach] Kevin Stefanski. They need a quarterback, they have a really good defense and if Kirk Cousins plays [his B game] or better, they win the division.”
That's kind of a tough sell given that Cleveland has gone just 3-13 this season and that Cousins was sent to the bench after throwing one touchdown and nine interceptions over a span of five games.
All things considered, there is absolutely a chance that the Browns add Cousins as a bridge quarterback, as they do currently own the No. 3 overall pick in the NFL Draft.
Cleveland could sign Cousins (assuming he is released) and then draft a signal-caller in April, allowing Cousins to serve as a mentor. And who knows? Maybe a change of scenery would be good for the Michigan State product, who did show some flashes earlier in 2024.
On the season overall, Cousins has thrown for 3,508 yards, 18 touchdowns and 16 picks while completing 66.9 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 88.6.
The four-time Pro Bowler played for the Spartans between 2008 and 2011 before being drafted by Washington in 2012.
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Matthew Schmidt is a sportswriter who covers NFL, MLB, NBA and college football and basketball. He has been writing professionally since 2011 and has also worked for Bleacher Report, FanRag Sports, ClutchPoints, NFLAnalysis.net and NBAAnalysis.net. He was born and raised in New Jersey and has a rather eclectic group of favorite teams: the Boston Celtics, New York Giants and Miami Marlins.