While the Atlanta Falcons improved to 7-7 on the season via an ugly 15-9 win over the lowly Las Vegas Raiders (2-12) on Monday night, few were surprised when Falcons head coach Raheem Morris confirmed on Tuesday that he was turning to rookie signal-caller Michael Penix Jr. amid Cousins’ ongoing struggles.
ESPN’s Ben Solak has noted that Cousins “lacks any springiness,” can’t “reset the pocket, extend plays or find throws off-platform,” and has struggled “to get to handoff landmarks” since suffering a torn Achilles in October 2023.
Per Kyle Koster of Sports Illustrated, former NFL player and interim head coach Jeff Saturday said during Wednesday’s edition of the ESPN “Get Up” program that he doesn’t think he’s ever “seen a player fall off a cliff” quite like Cousins.
Later on Wednesday, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio revealed why Cousins has recently looked like an old player rather than like the player of old.
“As one source put it, Cousins’ arm is currently dead. That’s believed to be a result of his inability to use his lower body to muster full power on his throws,” Florio wrote. “It stands to reason that, after 14 games of compensating for protecting his surgically-repaired Achilles tendon, he’s out of gas.”
Cousins tossed eight interceptions and zero touchdown passes over four consecutive losses before he completed 11-of-17 pass attempts for 112 yards with a score and a pick against the Raiders. According to Pro Football Reference, he began Wednesday ranked 22nd in the NFL among qualified players with a 52.7 adjusted QBR and 21st with an 88.6 passer rating on the campaign. He has also thrown a league-worst 16 interceptions.
Such numbers could lead one to believe the 36-year-old is “washed” and past his prime. If, however, Florio is right and Cousins is just “out of gas,” it’s not a stretch to believe some team would take a flier on his services during the upcoming offseason and at least give him a chance to win the starting job for the 2025 campaign.
Even though the Falcons signed Cousins to a four-year, $180M contract that included $100M guaranteed back in March, it became clear almost immediately after they made Penix the eighth pick of the 2024 draft that they could escape the veteran’s deal after just one season. Such a divorce now seems inevitable, but it remains to be seen if Cousins can convince a different club that he needs an offseason that won’t include recovering from a serious injury to relocate his best form.
