After signing a huge free-agent deal with the Falcons, Kirk Cousins had a conversation with a retired quarterback — who he didn’t name — about what to expect in Atlanta.
Cousins was joining a team that had suffered through six straight losing seasons and was still known for its famous collapse in the Super Bowl, when they blew a 28-3 lead. But this former quarterback gave Cousins a more optimistic view.
“I look at you in Atlanta and I say, that could be really fun if you win,” Cousins remembered him saying. “That could be a really special place to win.”
Nine games into Cousins’ time in Atlanta, the Falcons are indeed having a lot of fun. At 6-3, the Falcons are firmly in first place in the NFC South, putting them in a strong position to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2017.
Cousins has been a big part of the turnaround, proving he’s worth the four-year, $180 million contract. He ranks among the league leaders with 2,328 passing yards, including a career-high 509 yards in an overtime win against Tampa Bay.
He has 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions, a significant improvement over the mediocre quarterback play the Falcons had seen since Matt Ryan left.
To see just how much Atlanta has improved at quarterback, consider what the team had last season from Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke.
Cousins has already thrown as many touchdowns as Ridder and Heinicke combined for the entire 2023 season, and he’s made far fewer costly mistakes. He’s averaging nearly 259 yards passing per game, a big jump from the 220-yard average the Falcons had last year with their previous quarterbacks.
The Falcons knew they had many talented players on offense, like running back Bijan Robinson, wide receiver Drake London, and tight end Kyle Pitts. What they needed was a quarterback who could make the most of those talents.
“Kirk Cousins is exactly what I thought he was. He’s poised. He’s able to spread the ball around,” said first-year coach Raheem Morris, whose energetic and aggressive coaching style has also been a big factor in Atlanta’s improvement. “He’s just a playmaker.”
Now, the goal is to keep the success going. Morris understands that winning six games doesn’t mean the job is finished.
“This organization deserves more, this team deserves more, and these coaches deserve more,” Morris said. “We are hungry, man. We just want to go out there and keep getting them.”
