Falcons QB Kirk Cousins Opens Up on Monday Night Football Struggles

Cousins has a record of 3-10 in Monday night games, though he's 3-1 in his last four games.

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins has a 3-10 record on Monday Night Football. / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins is well aware of the perception surrounding his struggles on Monday Night Football.

Cousins, who's in his 13th professional season, holds a record of just 3-10 in Monday night games. The 36-year-old has found more success later in his career -- after starting 0-9, he's 3-1 in his last four tries.

He's not alone with his struggles. The Falcons are 15-28 in their history playing on Mondays.

But Cousins, who has completed 64.6% of his passes for 3,253 yards, 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, doesn't put much stock in any implications between his primetime play and his team's performance.

"I'd love to go out and be undefeated on Monday night," Cousins said Thursday. "I would love to have that be a different record, but I feel like I've always played pretty consistent, whether we won or lost -- there's things that happen that can affect the results, but I think if my play was dramatically different on Monday night, I'd go, 'Hey, I got to go look at this.'

"But when I look at it, I go, 'Not really playing any different. I'm still the same quarterback I am in other days and nights and mornings.' And so, I think when you feel like your play is consistent, then you say, 'Yeah, I mean, the results are what they are.'"

Cousins also made note of the records of his teams with the now-Washington Commanders and Minnesota Vikings compared to their opponents.

"Many times, we were roughly .500 on Monday night. We were playing teams that were winning their divisions and finished 13-3 and going to the NFC championship game or the Super Bowl," Cousins said. "And so, yeah, most of the time the betting odds were that you're probably going to lose.

"It kind of goes that way, too, where it's like, 'Hey, you're playing good football teams on Monday night and you got to face those challenges.'"

The next challenge awaiting Cousins and the Falcons is the Philadelphia Eagles, who host Atlanta at 8:15 p.m. Monday in Cousins' first primetime game with his new team. It marks the Falcons' first Monday night contest since Oct. 5, 2020, when they suffered a 30-16 loss to the Green Bay Packers. Atlanta is just 15-28 all-time on Monday night's.

Cousins said the Falcons need to enter Philadelphia with a steady mindset, pushing aside any external noise -- a process he said isn't easy but is something every player and coach needs to embrace.

"You just go play," Cousins said. "I think the shuttering of noise -- welcome to the NFL. You've got to come to this building, go to work every day, and it doesn't matter when you're playing, who you're playing, where you're playing. It's about coming to work, doing your job, ignoring the noise.

"And if you ride this roller coaster in this league, you'll be riding quite a ride."

The Falcons are in the midst of early-season turbulence caused by an 18-10 home loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 1. After an offseason filled with optimism and high expectations, several players -- including Cousins -- expressed their disappointment with the team's performance against Pittsburgh.

Cousins had a particularly difficult outing, going 16-of-26 for 155 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in his first game since suffering a torn Achilles in Week 8 last season.

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But the Falcons have moved forward. They've watched the film, embraced the lessons learned and tried to ensure they don't lose the same way twice.

Atlanta is preparing itself for a tough environment in Philadelphia, one in which Cousins is innately familiar with -- he and the Vikings played in primetime games at Lincoln Financial Field each of the past two seasons.

In 2022, Minnesota lost 24-7 on Monday Night Football. Cousins went 27-of-46 for 221 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. The year after, the Vikings suffered a 34-28 defeat in a Thursday night matchup. Despite the loss, Cousins starred, completing 31-of-44 passes for 344 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions, though he lost one fumble.

But Atlanta's return to primetime -- Monday is its first such game since November 2022 -- is about more than Cousins.

Falcons head coach Raheem Morris noted it's an exciting occurrence for every member in the organization, be it himself, the players, president Greg Beadles or the marketing team. Atlanta has three other primetime games this season, something Morris hopes the team grows accustomed to due to its underlying meaning of marketability.

It's a process, and a longer one at that, as the eight-day gap between games results in an altered, elongated schedule -- but Morris wants the Falcons to enjoy it.

"I think that's exciting for the team and the overall dynamic of it all," Morris said. "I think the actual team, the guys that actually go out there and play, it doesn't matter where it's got to be -- whether it's a Thursday night game, a Monday night game, a Sunday night game or just a Sunday game.

"They all are the same for us, but it's definitely more exciting because you're the only show under the lights, and that's always cool for the overall team and everybody that's a part of that."

The Falcons and Eagles will kick off at 8:15 p.m. Monday inside Lincoln Financial Field.