Best laid plans for Kirk Cousins went awry with the Atlanta Falcons during his first season with the club and this past offseason.
Henceforth, the veteran quarterback is moving on as the Falcons backup and a resounding supporter of starter Michael Penix Jr. as trade talk has silenced.
"We are moving forward now," Cousins said Tuesday at Falcons mandatory minicamp, per the team's official website.
Cousins skipped voluntary organized team activities, but, as expected, reported on time for this week's minicamp. Barring a trade suitor popping up, he is now the expected Falcons backup QB a year after he signed a four-year, $180 million contract.
Benched after a Week 14 win last season, Cousins sought a new landing spot, but as one hasn't materialized, he's devoting his focus and experience to helping Atlanta in his new QB2 role.
"Obviously you'd love to play but I'm not (going to) dwell on things that aren't reality," Cousins said on Tuesday, via The Associated Press. "It's better (time) spent to focusing on the situation you're in and control what you can control. I think that's the right mindset to have. Certainly there were conversations in January, February, March and even April but we're moving forward timeline-wise."
The aforementioned Atlanta deal came to fruition after Cousins tore his Achilles during his final year with the Minnesota Vikings. Cousins returned to the field with the Falcons and threw for 3,508 yards, 18 touchdowns and a league-high 16 interceptions in 14 games. Looking largely immobile, Cousins threw eight TDs in two games against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but otherwise struggled largely, including a five-week span in which he tossed just one score.
In retrospect, Cousins admitted he wasn't as healthy as he thought, in part due to ankle tightness that emerged throughout the season.
"The Achilles healed great," Cousins said, per The AP. "What ended up happening was the ankle was just very tight. Everything was (about building) strength so that's what I focused on. What I realized this offseason was the strength was there. It was a mobility issue. You have to have both and I really didn't have the mobility. So now it's been (about) mobility."
Even at this juncture, Cousins said he's still working back to being at full-strength -- a note that's probably not going to attract many spring trade suitors.
"When the season ended last year I started getting into working on my body and having the time to do that," Cousins said. "I thought I was much better than I was. On (a scale) of one to 10, I thought I was at an eight but I was really back at a three or four and now I'm getting back to that six, seven (or) eight. You start to realize that you weren't as far along as you thought. (There was) a lot of learning this offseason to get there."
Finances have also no doubt been a hiccup for any Cousins trade. Due $27.5 million in guaranteed salary this year, he would leave the Falcons with $50 million in dead money and a $10 million hit if he were released.
So, all signs point to Cousins and the Falcons moving carefully forward, making the best of a situation nobody saw coming in March of 2024 -- roughly a month before Atlanta stunningly selected Penix in the first round of the 2024 draft.
Cousins does see plenty of good fortune ahead for Penix, though.
"Michael is going to do great," Cousins said, per the team site. "He is going to have a great career. He is off to a great start, and he has all of the tangibles and intangibles that you need to be successful. I am just here to support him as he needs it. But, I also don't need to be in his ear so much that I am another weight, another voice. I just want to be able to support as I can, and he knows that."
