According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins wants to wait until after the NFL Draft to waive his no-trade clause. That’s a potentially dangerous waiting game, but Cousins apparently wants to take that route.
“Rather than taking anyone’s word for it, Cousins has already signaled to teams that he would likely want to wait to see what happens over draft weekend before accepting a trade,” Breer writes. “In a way, that should also work for the teams, allowing them to go through a full draft process—and make decisions on guys such as Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Ole Miss’s Jaxson Dart independent of Cousins’s destination.”
Would Cousins block a trade in the meantime?
“Why would Cousins block a trade to a place where he can start?,” Breer continues. “My understanding it would be chiefly to avoid the situation he found himself in last April when he was blindsided by Atlanta’s decision to take Michael Penix Jr. with the eighth pick. And that could be where the draft position of the aforementioned teams comes into play.
Cousins inked a four-year, $180 million deal last offseason and still has three years remaining on his contract. With Penix Jr. in the fold, the 36-year old knows that he’s not “the guy” anymore in Atlanta.
Cousins could be playing with fire
“There’s risk involved here, too, from Cousins’s side in that he’d probably be able to get at least a one-year commitment as a starter somewhere, ahead of a team deciding to draft a quarterback—and such opportunity could dry up after the draft,” Breer says.
“The other issue here is that Falcons owner Arthur Blank really doesn’t want to pay $90 million, or close to it, for a single year of Cousins. That will affect how much of Cousins’s $27.5 million for 2025 the Falcons are willing to take on to facilitate a trade and essentially buy a draft pick back from the team acquiring Cousins.”
Cousins could be open to a trade before the draft
Breer says that Cousins might not have his heels completely dug in regarding waiting until after the draft to waive his no-trade clause.
“One thing I have heard Cousins’s camp would be amenable to is working out the particulars of a trade ahead of the draft, on the contingency that a team trading for him not take one in the first round,” Breer says. “Of course, that would require working the money and compensation out ahead of time, and a lot can happen between now and the end of April. So, there are a ton of moving parts here. How they come together remains anyone’s guess.”
Regardless of how this all works out, the Falcons clearly put themselves in a bit of a spot when they signed an aging veteran in Cousins last offseason and then drafted a quarterback in the top 10 in the draft. It’s pretty rare that that happens. Now, not only do they have to figure out what to do with Cousins, but they have to navigate around his no-trade clause.
Cousins had moments of brilliance last year for Atlanta, but simply couldn’t win a game down the stretch and was eventually – mercifully – benched for Penix Jr. Cousins ended the season with 3,508 yards, 18 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
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