The Atlanta Falcons are benching Kirk Cousins, with rookie Michael Penix Jr. taking over as starting quarterback. The swap carries a risk, but there was no alternative. A commentary.

When Kirk Cousins signed with the Atlanta Falcons as a free agent in March, hopes were high. Much was expected of the long-time Vikings playmaker, who also secured a princely sum for his services – $180 million over four years.

Will he finally get the franchise’s long-struggling passing offense on track? Can he finally unlock the potential of highly talented skill players and top-10 picks Kyle Pitts, Bijan Robinson and Drake London?

After a large part of the 2024 NFL season, it can be said: Nope, he can’t. Or rather, he could. Because as is now official, rookie playmaker Michael Penix Jr. will now try his hand at this task. Starting with the Week 16 matchup against the New York Giants, the 2024 first-round pick Cousins will only start from the bench.

That it would come to this point was not foreseeable before the season began, but in view of Cousins’ development and performance in recent weeks, there is no alternative. The playmaker is lagging far behind his top form.

Atlanta Falcons: Kirk Cousins only a shadow of himself

This is not only shown by the statistics – with 16 interceptions, for example, he leads the league – but also by looking at his game. Cousins is not fresh, both mentally and physically, and sees windows where there are none.

On top of that, the 36-year-old hardly creates anything outside of his pocket, makes decisions too slowly and often the wrong ones, and generally appears extremely insecure.

Last but not least, this can of course also be attributed to his Achilles tendon rupture from last year, which obviously still has an impact. But hoping that he will somehow get better in the remaining three games is not an option for Atlanta and head coach Raheem Morris – and benching him is therefore the only right decision.

Kirk Cousins on the bench: Falcons decision despite risk without alternative

Nevertheless, the move, the timing of which came as a surprise, also entails a certain risk. How often are rookie quarterbacks eaten up by the defense in their first NFL games because the pace is simply different from college? How often are the first few games more of a settling-in period than a consistent display of one’s abilities?

For lack of alternatives, the Falcons, who are 7-7, now have to throw the 24-year-old into the deep end in the NFC playoff race.

At least the much-criticized Penix pick from April now appears in a completely different light. And to be honest, it can’t get any worse than with “Captain Kirk.”