Cousins’ last string of starts wasn’t supposed to happen. He returned to the QB1 role after the Falcons lost Michael Penix Jr. for the season. And while Cousins’ performances in seven games in 2025 have been mixed, there is something to be said about appearing under the lights against a team that is trying to win the division crown.
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Here’s the question for Cousins and the Falcons. What happens next year?
Under the four-year contract Cousins signed in 2024, the Falcons owe Cousins $45 million in 2026. $10 million of that amount is already fully guaranteed.
It is widely believed that he will be released. With guaranteed pay subject to compensation, Cousins will likely earn more than $10 million on the open market. Especially after Thursday night, during which he showed that he can still perform at a high level. That would allow the Falcons to avoid the additional $10 million they already must pay him on the fifth day of the 2026 league year.
He has already earned a bronze bust in the Hall of Fame of failed banks, with $321 million in career earnings until 2025. And he has proven to be a shrewd businessman, although his first foray into free agency was inevitable; Commanders were willing to double-tag him, but were unwilling to offer him equivalent long-term treatment.
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Cousins opted for the Falcons largely because they put multi-year financial security on the table, with $90 million fully guaranteed over two seasons. (The Vikings wanted to go year after year.) Since the Falcons are unlikely to pay him another $45 million, which would bring his three-year haul to $135 million, he’s likely a free agent, for the third time.
Cousins will hit the market at a very good time. The supply of veterans with initial experience will not meet the demand. Someone will consider attacking the 37-year-old man.
Teams that will (or at least could) pursue a potential QB1 include the Jets, Steelers, Browns, Bengals (if Joe Burrow’s recent comments portend a departure from Cincinnati), Colts, Raiders, Saints and Cardinals.
Then there are the Vikings, who need a viable veteran alternative to JJ McCarthy, in case the cork never comes out of the bottle for him. Would they want to bring Cousins back? Would you be willing to return?
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It’s also possible he stays in Atlanta under a reworked contract, especially with the jury still out on Penix, the eighth overall pick in the 2025 draft.
Regardless of how it plays out, Cousins will likely be paid another sizable contract. While he certainly won’t be at market level, Justin Fields received $20 million per year from the Jets in 2025. That should be the floor for Cousins, who could eventually reach $400 million in career earnings.