Kirk Cousins Responds to Outside Noise on Falcons' Raheem Morris

ATLANTA, Ga. -- The 2025 season for the Atlanta Falcons has been a significant disappointment. So much so that firing head coach Raheem Morris after just his second season is on the table.

Morris, though, doesn't appear to have lost the Falcons locker room, which is one of the biggest barometers used to determine whether a head coach should stay or go.

Atlanta's 29-28 victory Thursday's night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was a clear indication Morris still has the Falcons playing hard. Then the day after the game, quarterback Kirk Cousins expressed confidence in his teammates under the current coaching regime.

"I know the guys on our my team and the way they work and their attitude and their love for football," Cousins told SI in an exclusive interview. "[Not playing hard] just wasn't a concern of mine going into work each week after a tough loss. I felt like our group was resilient and were professionals.

"That's really where my focus went, just a lot of trust in the guys around me.

"It was more a matter of needing to find those inches, which are hard to find in football. We've lost a lot of one-score games. We've got to find those inches to win those one-score games, which we were able to do on Thursday night."

Kirk Cousins Gives Raheem Morris Endorsement?

Overall, Cousins provided a very positive respond when asked more than once about the outside criticism for the Falcons coaching staff, particularly Morris. But notably absence from his answer was anything specifically stated about the head coach.

"There's a lot you can control in pro football, and there's a lot you can't control. You learn pretty early on in your career that you focus on what you can control and not focus on what you can't control," Cousins said when asked about criticism for Morris. "We have three games left. That's where our focus needs to be, and then there's a bunch of things we can't control after that, which, we'll see where they go directionally.

"Certainly, what's in our control is how we play these next three weeks and how we prepare. I think that's not only where my focus needs to be but our entire locker room, and I expect that to be the case. We expect to play really good football down the stretch."

It's not Cousins's job to defend Morris. And again, Cousins had nothing but positive things to say when asked about the criticism the coaching staff has received. With his answer, though, the quarterback chose to focus on his teammates rather than to give Falcons fans any reasons not to want the struggling head coach fired.

Morris has posted a 13-18 record as Falcons head coach the past two seasons. As Falcons interim head coach in 2020, he led the team to a 4-7 record.

Morris also served as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2009-11. He posted one winning season, going 17-31 overall.

While Morris is only completing his second season as the full-time head coach in Atlanta, he's been a head coach in at least parts of six other seasons. He owns a .378 win percentage.

Cousins Giving Back to City of Refuge, Atlanta Community

Mercedes-Benz announced the details of its "Holidays with Love" campaign on Dec. 10. The 37-year-old quarterback, who is one of the event's ambassadors, spoke with SI on Friday to discuss the campaign.

Mercedes-Benz is donating 12 eSprinter vans this holiday season. Partnering with the company as one of 12 ambassadors, Cousins received the chance to pick one organization to receive the van. He chose City of Refuge, which is just blocks away from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

"We're really grateful for Mercedes," Cousins told SI. "They are obviously a class brand, but the people and the way they have given to this community but also the way they've been such great partners to my wife and I.

"That class that the brand has on a global scale has really been brought down to a personal level for us with our experience. We're really grateful for them."

City of Refuge aims to "lead individuals and families on an uninterrupted journey to self-sufficiency" in the Atlanta community. The organization places a strong emphasis on health and wellness, housing, job training and youth development to reach its goals.

Two other Falcons stars -- Bijan Robinson and Matt Ryan -- were also ambassadors in the "Holidays with Love" campaign with Mercedes-Benz this year. Robinson donated the van to Atlanta Public Schools while Ryan chose to support Raising Expectations Inc. through the Mercedes partnership.