Kirk Cousins is sixth all-time in career earnings for NFL players, with upward of $294,000,000 to his name. However, unlike the five names ahead of him, Cousins’ trophy case is a little lackluster. Now, on his third team in Year 13, the Super Bowl window is rather bleak for Cousins.
After a lengthy and oftentimes exhilarating stay with the Minnesota Vikings, he made his way to the Atlanta Falcons this offseason. A torn Achilles injury in Week 8 last year had put real question marks around his effectiveness going into his age-36 season. While some were expecting a Comeback Player of the Year performance, reality has been far more disappointing.
Kirk Cousins’ Rough Time in Atlanta
The season has been as up and down as a Cousins season can get. After the stunning choice by Atlanta to sign Cousins and draft Michael Penix Jr., the early returns weren’t promising for him. Through four games, Cousins was at four touchdowns and four interceptions as Atlanta stumbled to a 2-2 start.
However, Week 5 brought some much-needed optimism. In an OT thriller against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cousins would explode for 509 yards and four touchdowns, starting a five-game stretch where he had 13 TDs and three INTs.
Unfortunately, since the victory over the Dallas Cowboys, things have gone terribly bad. In the four weeks after that win, Cousins had not registered a single touchdown while totalling eight interceptions. The Falcons as a whole lost four of five, with two losses of 21 and 32 points, respectively.
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However, due to their W-L record against Tampa Bay and the general condition of the NFC South, the Falcons still have a shot at the playoffs. That is what makes the team’s recent decision to bench Cousins all the more interesting.
Of 34 qualifiers, through 15 weeks, Cousins ranks 26th in deep pass interception rate — one the names he ranks ahead was another casulity of depth chart changes this week in Jameis Winston. His 5.8% touchdown rate on such passes is the lowest of his career, meaning that he’s been occurring all risk and no real reward on those throws.
In starting a veteran over a rookie, the idea is that you get poise, but that hasn’t been the case. Cousins has thrown 10 interceptions on 126 pressured attempts this season — over the three years prior, he had seven picks across 231 such attempts.
So now, the team turns to Michael Penix Jr. with Cousins and his lofty contract heading to the bench.
Revisiting Cousins’ Career in Washington and Minnesota
When Cousins came to the Washington franchise, the Robert Griffin III era was fully underway. A fourth-round draft pick, Cousins was always going to be a backup to the dynamic Griffin. And for the first two and half seasons of his career, that was largely the case.
However, the piling injuries on RG3 got too much. As a result, Cousins became the permanent starter in Washington in 2015. Immediately, he led the league in completion percentage in a sign of things to come. For the next three years, Cousins was a consistent machine, throwing for over 4,000 yards each year to the tune of a 24-23-1 record.
In his lone playoff appearance, he had a sensational game, throwing for 329 yards and a touchdown while rushing for another. However, Washington lost to the Green Bay Packers, and Cousins didn’t make the postseason again while in DC.
The 2018 season saw the first change in scenery for Cousins. Signing a three-year, fully guaranteed deal with the Minnesota Vikings, Cousins would spend the next six years of his career in Minneapolis.
During that stretch, he led Minnesota to two playoff appearances (2019 and 2022). The former saw him make it back to the Pro Bowl, after earning his first selection in 2016.
The latter, however, is a rather incredulous season from the four-time Pro Bowler. By 2022, the Cousins experience was more or less set in stone. Around 4,000-4,500 passing yards, 25-35 TDs, and a low interception rate, while delivering exemplary efficiency (fifth in completion percentage in NFL history).
While statistically, the 2022 season was identical to those barometers, the intricacies were far more bizarre. After two years of missing the playoffs, Minnesota was fiending for postseason play. In a remarkable season, Cousins led eight different game-winning drives and fourth-quarter comebacks in the year to get the team into the playoffs with a 13-4 record.
Both those numbers are tied for the most in NFL history alongside Matthew Stafford. Despite his heroics, a shoddy 2023 season, earmarked by a ruptured Achilles led to the Vikings parting ways with Cousins. Immediately, the Atlanta Falcons were ready to take him on, signing him to a fresh four-year, $180 million contract.
How Much Has Cousins Made in His Career?
Through 2024, Cousins sits at sixth place on the list of all-time highest earners in the NFL with $294,169,486 to his name. Above him on the list are some of the all-time greats, with the likes of Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford, and Tom Brady leading the list.
Fourth and fifth on the list are Russell Wilson and Matt Ryan, respectively. In Cousins’ case, back-to-back franchise tags with Washington led to $19,953,000 and $23,943,699 price tags before the Vikings signed him with an $84,000,000 deal.
In 2020, the two sides would agree to a two-year, $66,000,000 extension before adding a third year worth $35,000,000. Subsequently, the Falcons’ $180,000,000 contract put Cousins over the edge and in sixth place on the all-time list.