The standoff between $180 million quarterback Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons has unsurprisingly continued past June 1, with Cousins away from the team for voluntary OTAs while Atlanta refuses to outright release the veteran.
The Falcons are presumably waiting for an opportunity to acquire draft capital and cash to help facilitate Cousins’ exit, as the four-year contract they signed him to in March of 2024 is brutal for a mid-tier starter — never mind a backup.
If Cousins were to be released, the Minnesota Vikings have been named as a potential landing spot. He not only has experience in coach Kevin O’Connell’s system, but a serious rapport with wide receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison as well.
The Vikings have their quarterback of the future, of course, in J.J. McCarthy. He’s coming off a torn meniscus, though, and in the case of another unfortunate injury setback, Cousins would undoubtedly be a better option than journeyman Sam Howell or undrafted rookie Max Brosmer.
Minnesota has been short on draft capital in recent years, so it’s unlikely that it would be willing to trade picks for Cousins. The contract is the other major hurdle, as the team willing to absorb the most guaranteed money will likely become the frontrunner to pry Cousins away from Atlanta.
Seth Walder, an analytics expert for ESPN, sees a path for the Vikings and Cousins to reunite without sacrificing future draft capital. Walder predicts Minnesota could acquire Cousins in exchange for Howell and $12 million in cash.
“The key to the compensation for a Cousins deal is how much of his guaranteed money the acquiring team will take on,” Walder wrote. “This would allow Atlanta to save a little face and get out of the situation with a different backup quarterback. For Minnesota, the upgrade at backup QB is more important because of the McCarthy situation. Cousins will have to accept a lesser role with his old team, but at least he'd be reunited with coach Kevin O'Connell.”
The Vikings have about $18.5 million in salary cap space for 2025, so they’d be committing about 65% of their remaining cap dollars for Cousins in this hypothetical deal. That feels a bit steep, but it’s worth noting that Minnesota probably would have signed Daniel Jones at that number had it not been for the $14 million he got from the Indianapolis Colts.
A potential reunion with Cousins is more realistic if the Falcons finally give in and cut their veteran quarterback. But the proposed cash is reasonable, and the upgrade from Howell to Cousins is sizable enough that it would foolish to rule anything out for GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Co.
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