Vikings' Kirk Cousins to Falcons in Free Agency? Veteran Deemed 'Best Fit' with Atlanta

Kirk Cousins could sign with the Atlanta Falcons this offseason.

Jeremy Brener | Feb 21, 2024

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The Atlanta Falcons have a couple different directions they can go in at the quarterback position this offseason.

The Falcons should seek any and all upgrades from Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke, who have both struggled at times this season for Atlanta.

ESPN believes Minnesota Vikings free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins is best fit for the Falcons.

"The Vikings should be in the mix to re-sign Cousins, but I think he fits really well with Atlanta under new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson (who worked under Sean McVay in Los Angeles)," ESPN writes. "It works well for Cousins in both the play-action and dropback passing game. Before tearing his right Achilles in Week 8, Cousins was completing 69.5% of his throws and had 18 touchdown passes to five interceptions. He would be an upgrade under center for an Atlanta offense that has plenty of young offensive skill talent in Drake London, Kyle Pitts and Bijan Robinson."

Will they decide to go for a 35-year-old coming off a torn Achilles over someone else like Russell Wilson or a rookie in a stacked draft class? It's hard to tell.

In eight games for the Vikings this season, Cousins threw for 2,331 yards, 18 touchdowns and five interceptions, putting him on pace for some of the best numbers of his career.

Cousins also has ties to the city ... he and his wife Julie were married in Atlanta in 2014. A move to the Falcons would be closer to Julie's home for his family of four.

Falcons Rumor: QB Cousins to Sign with Atlanta as Free Agent?

Signing Cousins would certainly be a risk, but even a slight upgrade from Ridder and Heinicke could get the Falcons into the postseason, and the Vikings signal-caller is more than a small improvement.

Would signing Cousins simply kick the rock of finding a true franchise quarterback down the line? Yes, but if the top options are likely to be gone before the Falcons can pick in this year's draft, it may be wise to go with a veteran like Cousins who can captain the ship for a bit.

Published Feb 21, 2024

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.