The Atlanta Falcons making quarterback Michael Penix Jr. the eighth overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft after they signed veteran Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180M contract that included $100M guaranteed in free agency continues to baffle outsiders amid the early days of training camp.
Falcons owner Arthur Blank offered a strong statement regarding the club’s current quarterback room while speaking with reporters on Tuesday.
“Kirk Cousins is our franchise quarterback, is our starting quarterback and he seems to be doing great from a medical standpoint,” Blank said while referencing Cousins’ ongoing recovery from the torn right Achilles he suffered last October, as shared by D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “His attitude, his leadership, culturally, personally, with our players, with the coaching staff, has been nothing short of outstanding. So, we couldn’t be happier with that situation.”
As recently as an interview released this week, Cousins hasn’t sounded overly thrilled about the fact that Atlanta used a valuable draft asset to select a player who could replace him atop the depth chart as soon as next March. Blank and others within the Falcons have repeatedly defended the Penix pick since this past April and the owner hinted on Tuesday that Cousins isn’t guaranteed anything with the franchise beyond the upcoming campaign.
“Kirk will be 36 at the start of the season,” Blank said. “We hope and pray he’s got three to four great years in front of him, maybe beyond that. Who knows? But we also know that at some point, there will be a point that we’ll need a transition. We want to make sure we do that smoothly.”
As of early Wednesday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed what became a win-now Atlanta team upon the signing of Cousins as the betting favorite at -120 odds to claim the NFC South division title for this season. Blank understands some fans wish the club would’ve used the eighth choice of this year’s draft to bolster a different part of the roster considering many expect the 2024 Falcons to do more than compete for just a playoff berth.
“At the moment, they may have liked a different player,” Blank said about Falcons supporters. “But at some point, down the road, they’ll want to know that we can have a smooth transition at that very critical position for the Atlanta Falcons in the National Football League.”