It’s the time of the season when the future, for at least the next year, will be decided. In March last year, the 36-year-old QB Kirk Cousins surprised his fans by making a move to the Falcons. He even joked about learning the Dirty Bird dance. He was coming off an ACL injury in 2023 with the Vikings. His 2024 record, 7-7, wasn’t very good either. The Falcons drifted towards rookie Michael Penix Jr. towards the end of the season. NFL insider Judy Battista made a surprising comparison between Kirk Cousins and Aaron Rodgers because of age and the damaging injury.

While talking to Tom Pelissero on February 17, she said, “Kirk Cousins is older [than Penix], but most players coming off Achilles’ injuries are better in year two. As a matter of fact, Aaron Rodgers should be better. He was better at the end of the season than he was at the beginning. More time goes by, the better he should be, so Kirk Cousins will probably be better next season than he was the previous season.” Now, that’s interesting.

41-year-old Aaron Rodgers suffered an Achilles injury in the first quarter of the 2023 season opener. But this year also, his record with the Jets wasn’t very inspiring. The Jets slump, failing to qualify for the playoffs since 2010, continued with a 5-12 record. Although, as pointed out, his individual performances did pick up towards the latter half of the season.

However, Kirk Cousins definitely has an advantage over A-Rod in terms of age. While everyone debates if Rodgers will now (forcefully) retire, the Falcons can hope for a couple of good seasons if they retain Cousins. But regardless of that, they will first have to pay him $27.5 million in base salary this year. In 2024, he had the worst season of his year with 16 interceptions. So, the odds are highly in favor of the young 24-year-old Michael Penix Jr., their first-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

That’s when the question of Cousins’ destination comes in. The free agency will open on March 12. And teams like the Browns need an experienced signal caller to move forward.

Kirk Cousins might change the conference

Battista also gave a sneak peek at a potential franchise for the QB, claiming the Browns could grab him. She even suggested a way, like the Super Bowl winner Russell Wilson who signed a veteran minimum deal with the Steelers. It could happen.

While explaining her stance on Kirk Cousins’ trade, she said, “Kirk Cousins is in a similar spot to Russell Wilson last year. If indeed he’s released. Getting paid a lot of money by somebody else can play someplace for the minimum.” It also depends on the signal caller.

He wouldn’t like getting traded after just one year with the Falcons. Also, Russell Wilson is not in a very good place despite the minimum contract. The Steelers are in double minds about him. HC Mike Tomlin has preferred Justin Fields for the starter quarterback in 2025. So, will he get axed and move on? Will this year’s free agency feature a bonanza of veteran QBs seeking a new home? The upcoming 20 days will be very interesting.