It’s been days since the Atlanta Falcons pulled off a shocker in the NFL Draft. Holding the eighth overall pick, the team drafted quarterback Michael Penix Jr. — just two weeks after signing Kirk Cousins to a massive deal. With the QB dilemma over in Georgia, fans are left to discuss what the team’s long term plans are. This topic was recently brought up in a podcast by sportswriters Bill Barnwell and Robert Mays. In fact, the journalists floated the idea of Cousins being traded to the Las Vegas Raiders.

“I was going to ask, are the Raiders the most likely Kirk Cousins destination if the Falcons trade Kirk Cousins after a year?” Barnwell said.

“Does he have a no-trade clause in his current deal or no?” Mays replied.

“He does, but if the Falcons are like, ‘Hey, you’re going to sit behind Michael Penix for the rest of this contract, or for another year,’ I don’t think Kirk’s going to sit there and make $27.5 million next year to sit on the bench,” Barnwell then said. (via The Bill Barnwell Show)

The Falcons fiasco

Back on March 13, Cousins signed a four-year, $180 million contract with the Falcons. The plan seemed clear to everyone…until draft day, that is. Which begs the question: Why did the team decide to bring in another starting QB? A number of factors could be at play.

For one, Cousins is already 35 years old, and drafting Penix shows that the Falcons have long-term plans when it comes to signal callers. After all, Atlanta GM Terry Fontenot did say that the Falcons “have the quarterback for now and have the quarterback for the future.” (per ClutchPoints’ Sonny Giuliano)

Secondly, Cousins’ Achilles injury may have something to do with it. While the four-time Pro Bowler was performing well before going down last year, a torn Achilles could possibly impact long-term play, and it could also be a sign that Father Time is slowly creeping in. It can be noted that Cousins suffered the injury in a non-contact situation.

While he will still most likely start in the upcoming season, having a talent such as Penix in the QB room can create many different scenarios moving forward.

Kirk Cousins to the Raiders?

If it somehow plays out like what Barnwell and Mays discussed, then Cousins will be heading to a Raiders squad that’s currently in need of a QB. Last year, the team fielded three different starters in hopes of finding the right playcaller under center.

Cousins will surely be starting over the likes of Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew. As mentioned, age may be a question mark, but the quarterback was in the midst of another strong season before the injury.

Prior to going down last year, Cousins managed to tally 2,331 passing yards and 18 touchdowns in eight games. In 2022, the QB threw 424-of-643 (65.9%) for a total of 4,547 yards and 29 scores in the regular season.

A Raiders move means that Cousins will be utilizing weapons such as Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers and rookie Brock Bowers (assuming none are involved in the hypothetical trade for the QB). Nevertheless, this is all just speculation, so the best that Raiders fans can do is wait and see how the ongoing scenario in Atlanta unfolds.