Falcons Potentially Seeking More Than Day 3 Pick for Kirk Cousins: Analyst

The Atlanta Falcons have continued to hold onto quarterback Kirk Cousins this offseason. The Falcons have done that despite the fact he is set to be the most expensive backup quarterback in the NFL.

Although surprising on one hand, it's not on the other. The Falcons have a certain amount of trade compensation in mind for a return with Cousins, and it apparently has yet to be met.

That's what CBS Sports' Jonathan Jones strongly suggested Friday.

"It's no stunner that Kirk Cousins remains on the Atlanta Falcons roster today. From a financial standpoint, I had been reporting for months that it made sense for Atlanta to hang on to Cousins through the new league year when he got a $10 million roster bonus for 2026," wrote Jones.

"But it wasn't until the league meetings a couple weeks ago that I realized it may not be as simple as a team sending a fifth-round pick to Atlanta for the quarterback, should he wish to waive his no-trade clause for them. The way Falcons owner Arthur Blank talks, it is clear he expects to see something from the investment of $90 million for one year of play."

Jones then referenced the comments from Falcons owner Arthur Blank at the NFL's annual league meetings when Blank addressed his private conversation with Cousins this offseason. In summary, Blank said the team would be "thoughtful and sensitive" to Cousins' personal needs but that the organization also had "a responsibility to the franchise."

Jones sees the Falcons viewing those responsibities as getting as much back in a trade for the veteran quarterback as possible.

"His $10 million bonus is subject to offsets, so if/when the Falcons deal him, that doesn't appear on their books. The sunk cost should be the focus here, and sources pair it with Blank's words to show the Falcons ownership may not be content with your little Day 3 pick for the quarterback," wrote Jones.

That matches what The Athletic's Alec Lewis reported on April 11. Lewis tweeted that he thought Cousins returning to the Minnesota Vikings was a possibility but added that the Falcons "would have to be willing to move at feasible price."

It was unclear to me at the time if Lewis was referring to the trade compensation or Cousins' contract with the phrase, "feasible price." Based on Jones' report, Lewis was likely referring to the trade compensation.

The CBS NFL insider, though, also presented another factor in a potential Cousins trade that isn't widely being discussed -- Cousins' family. The quarterback has two children in elementary school, and the family obviously just moved to Atlanta last year.

Cousins doesn't have to leave the Falcons if he doesn't want to. He can veto every trade offer the Falcons receive because of his no-trade clause and remain the backup in Atlanta to Michael Penix Jr.

No one sees Cousins doing this summer that because he's 36 years old and very likely wants to start in 2025. But if Cousins prioritizes his kids ahead of his career, then a scenario exists where the quarterback says no to any trade offer that comes in after his kids begin the 2025-26 school year.

"Cousins' kids will enter second and first grades next school year, and he moved them three times last year. The Falcons are aware that his family will be a huge consideration the later this goes," concluded Jones.

There were already a lot of moving parts to a potential Cousins trade. If the Falcons have to be concerned about the well-being of his children as well, then the strategy of waiting until a team sustains a key quarterback injury during the preseason might not work.