The Atlanta Falcons have spent the entire offseason exploring trade opportunities for veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins. This comes after a disappointing end to last season that opened the door for then-rookie QB Michael Penix Jr. to take over. Cousins could be a valuable trade asset, especially for a team in desperate need of a quarterback.
“Every time a quarterback gets hurt, the Falcons are going to be like, ‘Hello, look at the guy we got,’” NFL Insider Ian Rapoport said. “He suggested that Atlanta could even land a premium draft pick by trading Cousins during the season if a team becomes desperate enough.”
One increasingly likely scenario is a trade that sends Cousins to the Pittsburgh Steelers, who have yet to sign Aaron Rodgers and appear to have stalled on that front.
The Falcons could potentially kill two birds with one stone by including tight end Kyle Pitts in the same deal. Pitts has been involved in recent trade rumors and reportedly wants a larger role in a new offense.
“I don’t think it’s a situation where [the Falcons] are aggressively shopping [Pitts],” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said Saturday on SportsCenter. “But it appears, talking to some other teams, they think Atlanta is at least open to the possibility and Pitts might be as well. I’m told he loves Atlanta, this is not a situation where he’s requesting a trade, but if he has a chance to go to maybe a better offense where he’s more featured.”
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox recently proposed a hypothetical trade that would send both Cousins and Pitts to the Steelers in exchange for draft capital.
“Steelers Get: TE Kyle Pitts, QB Kirk Cousins. Falcons Get: 2026 2nd-round pick, 2026 5th-round pick, 2027 4th-round pick,”
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The Steelers have reportedly been in the market for a tight end, even reaching out to the Dolphins about Jonnu Smith. But if the Falcons offer a package that fills two positional needs—quarterback and tight end—Pittsburgh may find it hard to say no. Such a deal would also free up significant cap space for Atlanta.
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