Kirk Cousins reportedly staying with Falcons, securing $10M roster bonus

The Atlanta Falcons aren’t moving on from quarterback Kirk Cousins just yet.

Cousins will remain on the Falcons’ roster when his $10 million roster bonus is due at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday, according to multiple reports. While Atlanta could theoretically still move on from Cousins later this offseason, the decision is an indication that the Falcons plan to keep Cousins for the 2025 season, ESPN reported.

It appeared that Cousins’ days with the Falcons were numbered when the team benched him for first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. late in the 2024 season. In similar situations, teams have often decided to cut ties with the veteran quarterback after benching him for the quarterback they recently picked in the first round.

However, the team has signaled on multiple occasions this offseason that it would like to keep Cousins. Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot told reporters in January that they were “very comfortable” with Cousins being their backup quarterback. 

Fontenot reiterated that sentiment when he spoke with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine in February.

“Kirk handled that really well at the end of the season,” Fontenot said. “Obviously, Kirk’s a really talented player, he’s a great man, all those things. Again, he handled that role well at the end of the season.”

The Falcons already owed Cousins $27.5 million for the 2025 season before giving him his $10 million roster bonus on Saturday. He signed a four-year, $180 million deal to join Atlanta last offseason.

Even though the Falcons are keeping Cousins, that seems to go against what the veteran quarterback wants. Cousins told owner Arthur Blank that he’d like to be with a team where he feels he has a chance to start, Sports Illustrated reported earlier in March.

Cousins, who’ll turn 37 in August, has a no-trade clause in his contract, allowing him to dictate where he could play next if Atlanta reverses course. As he returned from an Achilles tear that ended his 2023 season early, Cousins went 7-7 in the 14 games he started, throwing for 3,508 yards, 18 touchdowns and 16 interceptions with an 88.6 passer rating. 

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