Spartan Legend Recognized for Primetime Performance
Michigan State legend and current Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins was recently honored for his record-breaking performance in Week 5.
Last week, Cousins dominated the Thursday Night Football contest between the Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He threw for an incredible 509 yards and four touchdowns in Atlanta's thrilling overtime win over the Buccaneers in primetime, completing 42 passes on 58 attempts.
It was the most single-game passing yards thrown by a quarterback yet this season, and it set a franchise record for single-game passing yards. Cousins did it in just his fifth game with the team.
For his outing, Cousins was awarded the NFL's NFC Offensive Player of the Week Award, the eighth time in his 13-year career he's received the honor.
Overall, Cousins is off to a hot start with Atlanta. He has led the Falcons to a 3-2 start and has thrown for a total of 1,373 yards and eight touchdowns. His passing total currently ranks fifth in the league, while his touchdown total also ranks fifth, as he is tied with Josh Allen, Derek Carr, Jordan Love and Dak Prescott.
Cousins joined the Falcons this past offseason after spending six seasons with the Minnesota Vikings. It was there that he developed into an elite quarterback, a status that started becoming a possibility during the final years of his six seasons with the Washington Redskins (now Commanders).
Through five games, Cousins has quickly turned things around for Atlanta, which finished last season 7-10. This year, he and the Falcons have beaten some solid teams, including Tampa Bay, the New Orleans Saints and the philadelphia Eagles. The only losses have been against the defending Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, and a 3-2 Pittsburgh Steelers team.
Cousins is a Michigan State icon, one of the best quarterbacks to have ever suited up in the Green and White. He ranks first in program history in career pass completions with 723 and second in career passing yards with 9,131.
Cousins is one of the many Spartan alums to have gone on and excel at the NFL level, and when all is said and done, he could very well end up being the best of them.
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