Cousins is slated to attend the Falcons' mandatory minicamp Tuesday and Wednesday. Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports.

EDGE Analysis

Cousins attended Atlanta's voluntary workouts in April but not voluntary OTAs in late May and early June. The veteran quarterback has expressed his desire to be traded to a team where he could compete to start, rather than work as the backup to Michael Penix. The Browns, Steelers and Vikings had been named as potential suitors for Cousins this offseason, but Cleveland has since added rookie draft picks Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, while Pittsburgh's long-awaited one-year deal with Aaron Rodgers finally has materialized. Cousins is now heading into his age-37 season, carrying a cumbersome contract and fresh off a 2024 campaign in which he visibly petered out down the stretch before being benched. Unless a path to a starting gig elsewhere and trade somehow comes to pass, for fantasy purposes Cousins looks like a mere late-round stash in formats that start multiple QBs.

The Browns, Steelers and Vikings may be interested in acquiring Cousins, whose contract includes a no-trade clause, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports.

EDGE Analysis

The contract also has a guaranteed $27.5 million salary for 2025, plus a guaranteed $10 million roster bonus in 2026. Cousins somewhat unexpectedly showed up for the start of Atlanta's voluntary OTAs this week, but he still seems to be hoping for a trade that would put him in a starting role -- preferably without competition from an early draft pick at the position. Pittsburgh would seem to be the cleanest fit, if Aaron Rodgers doesn't end up signing there and the Steelers don't use an early pick on a QB later this week. Falcons GM Terry Fontenot responded to some of the rumors and reports Wednesday, saying it's "not accurate" that the team has asked potential trade partners to take on at least $20 million of Cousins' salary, per Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network.

Cousins is present for the start of Atlanta's voluntary OTAs on Tuesday, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.

EDGE Analysis

Cousins' attendance at voluntary OTAs is something of a surprise, after his having been benched Week 16 of last season in favor of 2024 first-round pick Michael Penix, who is slated to kick off the 2025 campaign under center. Atlanta could have released Cousins in mid-March to avoid having his $10 million guaranteed roster bonus kick in, but the team opted to keep the veteran quarterback in house as a backup option or trade candidate. However, Cousins' contract includes a no trade-clause which he seems unlikely to waive unless the chance to inherit a starting role elsewhere materializes.

Cousins isn't expected to show up for voluntary OTAs this spring, D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

EDGE Analysis

The Falcons kept Cousins on the roster in mid-March rather than releasing him to avoid having a $10 million guarantee kicking in. He may still be traded at some point this offseason, but there's a real chance he enters Week 1 as the backup in Atlanta behind 2024 first-round pick Michael Penix. The Falcons benched Cousins in favor of Penix for the final three games last season, with the rookie completing 58 of 100 passes for 737 yards (7.4 YPA), three TDs and three INTs, plus seven carries for 11 yards and another score. Penix played well enough to keep the starting job heading into 2025, but perhaps not well enough for the Falcons to be confident that he's a franchise QB in the making.

The Falcons have decided to keep Cousins on their roster ahead of Saturday's 4 pm ET deadline for his $10 million guarantee to kick in, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

EDGE Analysis

Cousins lost his starting job to Michael Penix late last season and has been the subject of trade speculation in recent months. However, the Falcons appear determined to keep him around as a backup and mentor to Penix for at least one more season. It's still possible that a trade partner will emerge to persuade Atlanta to part ways with the veteran quarterback, but Cousins has a no-trade clause in his contract and may waive it only if put in the position to be a starter elsewhere.

Cousins may wait until after the NFL Draft to request a trade and/or waive his no-trade clause, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo.

EDGE Analysis

The idea would be to see which teams use an early pick on a quarterback before finding a new home for 2025. Cousins, of course, signed a four-year contract with the Falcons last offseason, only to see them take Michael Penix with the eighth overall pick. Cousins mostly struggled in his first year back from an Achilles' tear, and Penix eventually took over the starting job for the final three weeks. It may help Cousins to be another year removed from his injury, but he'll also be in his age-37 season, likely nearing the end of the line. It's unclear if he'd generate serious trade interest as a potential starter.

Cousins said Tuesday that the right shoulder injury he sustained in Week 10 impacted the quality of his play down the stretch, and contributed to his benching in favor of rookie Michael Penix in Week 16, Josh Kendall of The Athletic reports.

EDGE Analysis

Cousins' season looked remarkably different prior to Week 10, as he boasted a 17:7 TD:INT entering the road matchup against New Orleans, compared to a 1:9 TD:INT in his final five appearances. He was listed on the injury report immediately after the contest against the Saints, but was then limited for only one practice before being listed as healthy to conclude the campaign. Coach Raheem Morris and general manager Terry Fontenot also affirmed multiple times that the veteran QB's health wasn't a factor in the decision to bench him for Penix. Still, Cousins' focus to begin the offseason is related to getting healthy. "If we can do that," he said, "[I] feel like I've got a new life ahead of me in pro football." Fontenot has stated that Cousins will work as the backup to Penix during the 2025 season, but if the veteran's struggles were indeed mostly injury-related and he's able to quickly get right, it could make it easier for Atlanta to facilitate a trade.

Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot said Thursday that Cousins will head into the 2025 season as the No. 2 quarterback behind Michael Penix, Marc Raimondi of ESPN.com reports. "Kirk is a great man and he's been great support for Mike, a great teammate, great support for everybody in the building, so we're very confident moving forward with him as the backup," Fontenot said.

EDGE Analysis

Shortly after the Falcons benched Cousins in favor of Penix in Week 16, Adam Schefter of ESPN reported that the expectation in league circles was that Atlanta would cut Cousins before March 17, when the 36-year-old quarterback is due a $10 million roster bonus. Fontenot pushed back on that report during his press conference Thursday, noting that Atlanta signed Cousins to a four-year, $180 million deal last March with the expectation that they would "get high-level quarterback play for two seasons." That didn't come to fruition, as Cousins completed 66.9 percent of his passes for 3,508 yards and 18 touchdowns while committing 18 turnovers (16 interceptions, two lost fumbles) in 14 starts before Atlanta turned the offense over to the rookie Penix. While Fontenot acknowledged that Cousins didn't perform as well as anticipated, the GM reiterated that the Falcons are comfortable with him as a backup heading into the upcoming season, though that won't preclude the organization from trading him if the right deal emerges. Atlanta would almost certainly have to absorb some of the $27.5 million on Cousins' base salary for 2025 to facilitate any trade.

Cousins is expected to be cut by the Falcons before his $10 million roster bonus is due March 17, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

Cousins has been demoted to the backup role behind rookie first-round pick Michael Penix ahead of Atlanta's Week 16 game against the Giants. The veteran quarterback lost his starting role after posting a 1:9 TD:INT in his last five starts. Cousins signed a four-year, $180 million contract with the Falcons prior to the 2024 season, but Atlanta appears ready to move forward with Penix while eating the remainder of Cousins' $100 million guarantee.

Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said Wednesday that Cousins will serve as the team's No. 2 quarterback behind rookie Michael Penix in Sunday's game against the Giants, D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

EDGE Analysis

On Tuesday, Morris announced that Penix would take over as Atlanta's starter, but it wasn't immediately known if Cousins would serve as his direct backup, or if the Falcons would elevate Nathan Peterman from the practice squad to handle those duties. Rather than making Cousins a healthy inactive, Atlanta will continue to have the veteran signal-caller suit up on game days, even though the Falcons are now turning the offense over to the rookie first-round pick. Cousins' long-term future in Atlanta is another matter, as the 36-year-old is being benched just 14 games into the four-year, $180 million contract he inked with the Falcons this offseason. Through those 14 appearances, Cousins has completed 303 of 453 pass attempts (67 percent) for 3,508 yards, 16 touchdowns and a league-high 16 interceptions. Nine of those interceptions came over Cousins' most recent five starts, during which he threw for just one touchdown.