Falcons Signing Kirk Cousins Among Biggest Recent NFL Mistakes

ESPN's Bill Barnwell ranked the Atlanta Falcons signing quarterback Kirk Cousins one of the top 10 worst mistakes in the NFL since 2020.

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins talks with umpire Rich Hall and referee Shawn Smith / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

ESPN's Bill Barnwell released an article naming the worst mistake for each NFL franchise this decade. Barnwell also ranked those 32 mistakes from each team in the popular sports media list format.

The topic was particularly timely for the Atlanta Falcons, who benched quarterback Kirk Cousins on Tuesday. In March, the Falcons signed Cousins to a 4-year, $180 million contract.

Barnwell picked that contract as the biggest mistake for the Falcons. He also ranked it at No. 8 among the worst mistakes made in the league since 2020.

"The veteran quarterback started his brief Atlanta career unable to move well enough tohand off the football as he returned from a torn Achilles suffered last October. Throughout the season, the Falcons basically kept him as still as possible, running the league's lowest play-action and out-of-pocket pass rates. After a stretch with one touchdown pass and nine interceptions over the past five games, coach Raheem Morris decided to cut bait and replace the 36-year-old starter with rookie first-round pick Michael Penix Jr.," wrote Barnwell.

"The logic of signing Cousins to a significant deal and then using a first-round pick on Penix always seemed flimsy, but it's only getting worse. Unless the Falcons can find a trade partner for Cousins this offseason, they'll likely cut him to avoid triggering a $10 million bonus for 2026, which guarantees in March 2025. For 14 starts from a player whose QBR ranks 22nd in the league, they will end up paying $85 million, minus any potential offset if he signs for the minimum somewhere else next offseason."

There can be some recency bias when it comes to these kinds of rankings. Perhaps a year from now, the Cousins deal will drop on Barnwell's list.

It will help if rookie Michael Penix Jr. plays well. If Penix proves to be the answer behind center for the Falcons by the middle of next season, few will still want to discuss the Cousins fiasco.

Moving on from a mistake seemed to benefit the Pittsburgh Steelers on Barnwell's list. The Steelers missed on first-round quarterback Kenny Pickett two and a half years ago. He was off the team's roster only halfway through his rookie deal.

First-round picks rarely don't finish their rookie deals with the teams that draft them. For a quarterback to do that is pretty disastrous. But the Steelers are 10-4 with Russell Wilson now, so Barnwell ranked drafting Pickett in the first round as the No. 30 (out of 32) top mistakes since 2020.

Even if Penix becomes a franchise quarterback, though, signing Cousins proved to be the wrong decision, and that's a mistake that will remain one of the worst in Falcons recent history.

At least it hopefully will. Falcons fans would prefer the team not make another mistake that tops it.