NFL free agency: Falcons hand Kirk Cousins $180m deal as Eagles nab Saquon Barkley
The Atlanta Falcons moved to complement their array of offensive weapons with a proven starting quarterback by agreeing a four-year deal with Kirk Cousins on Monday. Cousins’s agent, Mike McCartney, confirmed the move on social media on Monday. ESPN reports the deal is worth $180m, with $100m guaranteed.
Elsewhere, the Philadelphia Eagles agreed to contracts with former New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley and New York Jets defensive end Bryce Huff, according to multiple reports. Barkley is set to sign a three-year deal for $26m guaranteed and $37.75m overall, while Huff is getting a three-year deal for $51m, according to sources. Free agents can’t officially sign with new teams until Wednesday. Barkley ran for 962 yards and six touchdowns last season in 14 seasons and had 41 catches, including four TDs. Huff has 17.5 career sacks, 65 total tackles and one forced fumble in four seasons with the Jets.
The Falcons have stockpiled talent on offense for a number of years, including tight end Kyle Pitts, running back Bijan Robinson and wide receiver Drake London, who are all top 10 draft picks. But they have yet to find a competent replacement for Matt Ryan, who left the team at the end of the 2021 season. While Cousins is in the upper-half of NFL quarterbacks he is 35 and coming off a torn achilles that ended his season with the Minnesota Vikings in 2023. Cousins had a 103.8 passer rating in eight games for the Vikings until the injury, the third-best in the league, while the Falcons struggled with Desmond Ridder and Taylor Heinicke at quarterback. Falcons owner Arthur Blank called his quarterback room “deficient” last season, and few fans would have disagreed.
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The epitome of a late bloomer, Cousins enjoyed largely the most effective performances of his career since the Vikings hired coach Kevin O’Connell in 2022.
The Vikings were going to need a succession plan regardless of how this negotiation played out, though, considering Cousins’ age and their commitment to a “competitive rebuild,” as general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has termed it several times.
“After significant and positive dialogue with Kirk and his representatives, we were unable to reach agreement on a contract that fits the short and long-term visions for both Kirk and the Minnesota Vikings,” Adofo-Mensah said in a statement. “Kirk holds a special place in Vikings history, and we appreciate his leadership and contributions to the team and the Minneapolis-St Paul community over the past six seasons. We wish him, his wife, Julie, and their children all the best. Our approach heading into free agency always included layers of contingencies regarding the quarterback position. We are moving forward with plans that allow us to continue building a roster that can compete for a championship.”
The Vikings were serious in their desire to continue with Cousins, but given their cap situation and the recent improvement and outlook around them by their NFC North foes they had to have a limit about how much – and for how long – they could guarantee.
Cousins, for as much as he wanted to finish his career with Minnesota, also made clear he wanted to be valued with a commitment beyond a token year.
“It’s not about the dollars, but what the dollars represent,” was how Cousins put it in an interview with reporters in January.
Cousins has not only been the consummate overachiever on the field, from afterthought college recruit to fourth-round draft pick to currently 24th place on the NFL’s all-time list in career passing yards (39,471), but he has mastered the business side of the game with the guidance of McCartney.
After playing on consecutive franchise tags for Washington in 2016 and 2017, Cousins cashed in as the rare starting quarterback to hit free agency in 2018 when the Vikings had salary cap space and a pressing need at the position after an NFC Championship Game appearance. He got the first fully guaranteed, multi-year contract in league history for a quarterback when he signed for $84m. Over the past eight seasons, Cousins has earned more than $228m. He has won only one playoff game, after the 2019 season. With the $100m guaranteed from the Falcons, his career earnings will be just under $330m, fourth all-time among NFL players and just $3m behind Tom Brady.
If Cousins sticks with the Vikings for the duration of the deal, it will take his career earnings to $411m, the highest figure in league history.
The Vikings restructured Cousins’ deal a year ago without giving him any new money, resulting in a $28.5m salary cap hit in 2024 for the remaining signing bonus proration if they didn’t reach an extension before the new league year officially starts on Wednesday afternoon.
Elsewhere in the NFL on Monday, Russell Wilson agreed to a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The nine-time Pro Bowl quarterback agreed to a contract worth the veteran minimum.
