Kirk Cousins Is Reportedly Planning a Move to Atlanta

Pro Football Talk — Vikings fans who would love to forget the 1998 NFC Championship might have another reason to think about it.

The team that beat the Vikings that day in January 1999 could be poised to pilfer quarterback Kirk Cousins.

We can’t get into the specifics, for now. But we’re getting very credible indications that Cousins is seriously considering moving his family to Atlanta. Which would mean, obviously, that he’d be signing with the Falcons.

The Falcons have always been the top alternative to the Vikings for Cousins, who becomes an unrestricted free agent next Wednesday. And for good reason. His wife, Julie, grew up in nearby Alpharetta, Georgia. Her parents still live there.

The Atlanta Falcons were a heavy favorite last week to be the next team to employ Justin Fields, but it now seems like the Dirty Birds' next quarterback may come from a different NFC North team.

Look, I love Kirk Cousins. But I'm not sure I love a 36-year-old Kirk Cousins coming off a torn Achilles for $40 million more than I love Justin Fields for $3 million. And if Fields balls out and has an awesome year, then you'd pay him at most what you're paying Cousins going forward anyway and if he doesn't, you can just try the free agent pool or draft somebody next year. Fields seems like at his best, he'd make Atlanta's offense so much more dynamic, too.

I guess I just need to remind myself that at literally any point during the 2023 season, I would have slammed my balls in a waffle iron to have Kirk Cousins take over for Desmond Ridder's bum ass. I will not be upset about any quarterback who has thrown for at least 4,000 yards and 29 touchdowns in each of his last three full seasons.

Obviously Cousins would take the Falcons out of the running for a QB in the first round of the NFL Draft, but would Atlanta still look at drafting one in the third or fourth round to hopefully be groomed by a veteran? Fuck it, let's buy a lottery ticket on Joe Milton.

If it's Fields, awesome. If it's Cousins, great. The Falcons have two good options and will seemingly have a real quarterback in 2024 for the first time in several years.