More steam that Kirk Cousins, Bill Belichick could team up in Atlanta

Where there's smoke there's fire?

Author:
Joe Nelson
Publish date:
Jan 25, 2024 10:14 AM EST

Kirk Cousins could play for the Minnesota Vikings again next season but there appears to be growing momentum for the veteran quarterback to find a new home as he winds down his NFL career.

On Wednesday, Star Tribune Vikings insider Ben Goessling said Minnesota's front office probably won't "bat an eye" if the cost to trade up for a quarterback in the draft is multiple first-round picks. Just last week Cousins himself said he wouldn't turn down an opportunity to play for legendary head coach Bill Belichick.

And now ESPN's Jeremy Fowler has spoken to anonymous league executives, one of them being of the opinion that Belichick and Cousins could team up with the Atlanta Falcons.

Under a subtitle reading "Kirk Cousins and Bill Belichick will be Falcons ... and win the NFC South," Fowler wrote:

The feeling out of New England was that Belichick planned to target an established veteran quarterback for the Patriots in 2024. If he gets the Atlanta job, as some expect, he can follow a similar blueprint.
Cousins might very well re-sign with Minnesota, but if not, the Falcons offer several high-end skill players on offense and an improving defense -- they're the proverbial quarterback away. "[Belichick] can help a talented yet underachieving team, and Atlanta is that," an AFC executive said. "Cousins would be a great fit there."

“I’m not going to turn down an opportunity to play with a future Hall of Fame coach,” Cousins told CBS Sports’ Isabel Gonzalez on Jan. 18, “but we’ll have to see where March leads, there’s just a lot of unknowns right now.”

Over at The 33rd Team, former Vikings general manager Jeff Diamond predicted that it'll take $45 million a year to sign Cousins, who is expected to be one of the premiere quarterbacks on the market if he doesn't re-sign with Minnesota before free agency begins March 13.

It's hard to believe that the Vikings' season ended just 18 days ago and that just over two weeks ago Minnesota general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said it's his intention is to bring back Cousins. But, like Cousins admitted, the unknowns outweigh the knowns and until the smoke clears the rumor mill will reign supreme.