Once the ‘6th Choice’, Kirk Cousins Unconcerned by Falcons Drafting Michael Penix Jr.

The Falcons signed QB Kirk Cousins as the savior of their offense. They have had all the pieces to go to playoffs with minor changes to their offense, yet they failed to do so 6 years in a row. Captain Kirk was great news to the fans because they had a great QB in their lineup. The feeling was short-lived, as within 45 days of the deal, they drafted rookie QB Michael Penix JR in their 1st round, as the overall 8th pick.

When asked about it in the Bussin with the Boys podcast, Cousins said, “There are things you control and there’s a lot of things you don’t control.” It’s not QB’s first rodeo when he might not be the first choice for a team. That happened to him at Michigan State too, where he was the 6th choice QB for the state. 

He reminisced about his Michigan State scenario, “They explained to me at the visit. They said we’ve offered five other quarterbacks, if any of them commit, we will not offer you because we’re gonna take one quarterback in this recruiting class. If all five don’t commit, we would then maybe send you an offer. So you’ll do this official visit, but no offer.” 

Cousins went on “A week and a half later, I get a call from Coach Dantonio. He offered me a scholarship. What he was saying was as they went 0-for-5. So I said okay, and I didn’t commit right there in the moment but slept on it. The next day, I call him and I said, I’d like to be a Spartan. So I committed.” 

The reasons the Falcons would have felt the need to look for a younger QB can be twofold. One, they could be planning to redesign the entire team keeping the next few seasons in mind as the Michigan State alumni will be 36 this year. Second, the veteran is still nursing an Achilles injury he sustained in week 8 of last season, and is not sure of his performance on the field.

Cousins spoke about the draft. “Let’s deal in reality, you know, and recognize that fact and then be a steward, not an owner. So I just believe that I got to steward what comes my way and control what I can control, which is what a steward does but a steward doesn’t worry about that which they can’t control. An owner does.” He further continued, “An owner would be like, ‘Oh, my goodness.’ So I just got to steward this. And just, you know, do kind of what I’ve always done as a player and let the chips fall where they may.”

Even though Cousins understands the technicalities of the franchise decisions, it is yet to be seen how things will pan out. The Falcons are seemingly planning ahead of time to reach the ultimate glory in the coming seasons.

Kirk Cousins buys into the Falcons’ plans

The Atlanta team had just signed a four year free agent deal worth $45 Million a year with Cousins. The ex Vikings’ QB sure looked like a perfect fit for their offense. This is why Penix Jr.’s draft came as a shock to many. When asked about his communication with Penix Jr., Cousins stated, “I texted him that night, I just wanted him to have my number, coz you know just to have a resource, to reach out to. I was like hey where shall I live? I just wanted you to have my number if you need anything. And just congratulated him on the awesome college career.”

One thing is clear that Falcons would be unhappy if they don’t qualify for at least the playoffs this season. The young guns assembled in the team show Falcons’ mindset at the moment regarding their team. They surely plan to utilize the veteran QB’s skills to prepare the rookie QB, further solidifying their offense.

While it will be a great learning experience for Penix Jr. there could be certain changes to the quarterback room atmosphere. But for now it seems like the veteran QB has no qualms regarding the franchise’s decision. In Cousins’ own words, “This isn’t like a foreign concept. There’s an awareness that this is the NFL, you know, anything can happen.”