Kirk Cousins' first season with the Atlanta Falcons did not go as planned for either party, and now the quarterback has finally shed some light on why things went sideways for him after a strong start.

Cousins said Tuesday on NFL Network's "Good Morning Football" that he took a hit during the team's Week 10 game against the New Orleans Saints and hurt his right shoulder and elbow. Previously, he and the team had maintained that he was healthy.

"I, against the Saints, got hit pretty good in my right shoulder and elbow and from there kind of dealing with that was something I was working through and just never really could get it to where I wanted it," Cousins said.

The Falcons lost that game, which started a four-game losing streak that sent them from 6-3 to 6-7. Cousins was benched in favor of rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. in Week 16 after a stretch with nine interceptions and just one touchdown pass over five games.

Cousins was listed as limited on the injury report for one day during Week 11 for a right shoulder and right elbow injury, before the Falcons' game on the road against the Denver Broncos. That day was just a walk-through, though, and the injury report was an estimate. Cousins said after the Broncos game that it was just a "clerical error" and he was 100% healthy.

Cousins tore his right Achilles in Week 8 of the 2023 season. He said the Achilles heeled well, but his right ankle also never felt right in 2024.

"Even if the right ankle wasn't perfect, nobody's perfect in this league," Cousins said. "We're never feeling a 100%. So, it didn't really affect me too much."

The Falcons won just two more games after that 6-3 start and, after being in pole position to win the NFC South with a pair of wins over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they ended up missing the playoffs. Atlanta has not had a winning season nor a playoff appearance since 2017.

Now, Cousins' future with the Falcons is unclear. Penix performed well in his three games as starter and the team is committed to him moving forward. Atlanta general manager Terry Fontenot said last month that the team was "very comfortable" with Cousins being Penix's backup in 2025.

Cousins signed a four-year, $180 million contract with Atlanta last offseason with $90 million guaranteed.

If the Falcons cut Cousins before the start of the 2025 league year (March 12), they would get hit with $65 million in dead money charge, coming from his fully guaranteed base salary of $27.5 million and $37.5 million in remaining proration, per Roster Management System. If they do it with a post-June 1 designation, the dead money would spread over the 2025 and 2026 seasons -- $40 million in 2025 and $25 million in 2026.

A trade would be another option, if Cousins gives the go-ahead. He has a no-trade clause. Cousins played well earlier this season and could be attractive to teams that believe he'll be better -- and healthier -- in 2025. If the Falcons traded Cousins, they would be on the hook for the $37.5 million of remaining proration, while his fully guaranteed $27.5 million of base salary would transfer to his new team. There's also a likelihood that Atlanta would have to eat some of that $27.5 million in a deal.

Cousins also has a $10 million roster bonus for 2026 that would become fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2025 league year. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in December that the Falcons are likely to cut Cousins before that $10 million bonus kicks in, which Fontenot denied. Fontenot's remarks after the season made it seem like the Falcons were looking to get value back from Cousins in a trade.

On Tuesday, Cousins said his future is "still kind of uncertain" and he'll know more in March.

"I definitely still feel like I have a lot of good football left in me," Cousins said.

He said his focus now will be getting healthy.

"I'm no good to the Falcons, I'm no good to a team if I'm not feeling really good," Cousins said. "And so that's really where my focus has been through January and February. Now that the season has wound down I'm really taking all the time I can to get my body feeling really good."

ESPN

...and I'll go on the record, here and now, that I couldn't agree with these actions more.
So, if he does this...and not just for a minute, actually either helps their eradication and/or massive changes for the better...
...kudos to the man, and all who participated. The dnc rode the optics train so long and hard on this that it made me want to puke forever.

https://www.reuters.com/world/trump-orde...025-02-03/

NFL Honors
Thursday, 8 p.m. (FOX, NFL Network)

There are Vikings finalists for three awards presented at the NFL Honors show: head coach Kevin O’Connell for Coach of the Year, defensive coordinator Brian Flores for Assistant Coach of the Year and Darnold for Comeback Player of the Year.

Darnold’s recognition comes against some odds, as the Associated Press' guidance for the award states it is intended for “a player who has demonstrated resilience in the face of adversity by overcoming illness, physical injury or other circumstances that led him to miss playing time the previous season.”

Voters were left to interpret “other circumstances” as they felt fit. The other finalists — Bengals QB Joe Burrow, Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins, Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez and Bills safety Damar Hamlin — returned to significant playing time this season after injuries or other medical issues in the past two years.

Franchise and transition tag period
Feb. 18-March 4
Teams have a 15-day window to tag their free agent players with either franchise or transition tags before the signing period.

The Vikings could tag Darnold if they want to keep him around for another season without committing long-term. Darnold would be paid an estimated $39.5 million next year if tagged. He could also be tagged by the Vikings and then traded.

Whether the Vikings tag Darnold or not could be a substantial clue to how they view their 2025 quarterback outlook. O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah didn’t commit to a path forward at QB following the conclusion of the 2024 season.

Scouting combine
Feb. 24-March 3
Vikings coaches and front office personnel will turn their focus to the incoming rookie class at the scouting combine, which is once again being held at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

Televised coverage of on-field workouts begins at 3 p.m. Feb. 27, on NFL Network and lasts through March 3.

The full list of combine invitees has not been publicly announced. 

Free agency
Negotiation period, March 10-12
Signing period, March 12

It should be another busy mid-March for the Vikings, who have 28 free agents. Among them are prominent role players on both sides of the ball, including Darnold; running backs Aaron Jones and Cam Akers; safety Camryn Bynum; cornerbacks Stephon Gilmore, Fabian Moreau and Murphy; edge rusher Pat Jones II and more.

Last year’s free agency period brought a host of talent to Minnesota, particularly on the defensive side, and set a high bar for Adofo-Mensah, who is projected to have around $60 million in cap space. Which positional needs the Vikings address in free agency will help inform how they might spend their draft picks, too.


NFL draft
April 24-26
The 2025 NFL draft is taking place only a short road trip away from the Twin Cities in Green Bay, Wis.

The Vikings, who are No. 24 in the draft order, currently have just three picks: one in Round 1 and two in Round 5. They could receive a compensatory pick in the third round for quarterback Kirk Cousins leaving in free agency last year.

Last year, the Vikings traded their second-, third- and fourth-round picks in this year’s draft for the No. 17 overall pick they used to select outside linebacker Dallas Turner.

Minnesota’s sixth- and seventh-round picks were part of the deal sending edge rusher Za’Darius Smith to the Browns in 2023. The Vikings received their fifth-round picks in both last year’s and this year’s draft in the deal.

Startribune

Superstar DE Myles Garrett wrote up a nice note thanking Cleveland for the smiles and (mostly) cries, and officially requested a trade.

Soooo... Dallas Turner for Myles who says no?   Or can we somehow pair them together?? Or does this 99.9% chance have nothing to do with us? Probably, but big news regardless.

Cleveland is in a freefall.

EDIT: Thanks @Canthony for correcting me. Originally I kept calling Garrett, Myles Turner. Whoops.

Whoa. Wonder what the Mavs know that the rest of us don't? Blockbuster.

I just watched this documentary about the life of Fran Tarkenton on ESPN and it's worth watching if you have never seen it.  It first aired in 2018 but was recorded before that. It referred to Brady breaking one of his records in 2017, a record that was 40 years old.

Through the decades, I had soured on Fran. It's a good chance I had soured because we never won the Super Bowl and I subconsciously blamed the QB. This documentary changed that.

I don't remember Fran's 1st tenure with the Vikings and really don't remember him as a Giant. I became a Vikings fan somewhere around 1970. Fran was traded back to the Vikings in 1972. This documentary reminded me of why I fell in love with the Vikings and brought back a bunch of memories. Some good, some ... not so much. Fran is a very likable guy, a lot tougher than I had ever given him credit.

"Scramblin' Fran" is scheduled to air again today on ESPNews at 1:30 eastern if anyone cares to watch or record it.

Love got $55m/year, $160mm guarantee
Lawrence at $55m/year, $200mm guarantee
Dak $60m/year, $231mm guarantee

49'ers are going to have to pay dearly for Brock...

https://overthecap.com/position/quarterback


Kinda ratches-up the urgency to get JJM out there on that rook $$