Falcons land best odds for Kirk Cousins if he leaves Vikings

Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins could be one of the biggest names in the free agent market if Minnesota doesn’t re-sign him. And the Falcons are the early favorite to land him.

So follow the money for a clue. A DraftKings rep told Pro Football Talk that the Vikings still are the clear betting favorite to keep Cousins, who they signed six years ago. DraftKings gives it a -200. But, Atlanta is the destination if he leaves Minnesota, with Draft Kings establishing odds at +300. And if it’s not the Falcons, then the Commanders are drawing odds of +500. Cousins started his career in Washington, so maybe he ends it there.

Then there’s the Raiders at +800. Vegas is likely to waive Jimmy Garoppolo after the NFL suspended him for two games for testing positive for performance-enhancers. The Raiders already benched him at the end of last season. Might they look to Cousins? DraftKings also lists the Titans and Patriots at +1200. The Steelers are at +1600. The Bucs, which may lose Baker Mayfield to free agency, are at +3500. The Broncos and Bears are each at +5000. Denver probably is moving on from Russell Wilson. And Chicago is deciding whether to keep Justin Fields or use the top pick of the NFL Draft for a quarterback.

Cousins’ contract with the Vikings ends March 13. Minnesota must decide whether they want to keep him, knowing that he’s about to be 36 and is coming off an Achilles injury that ended his season in October.

During interviews last week, Cousins told the media he wants to keep his career with the Vikings.

“We’ll have to see how it all plays out,” Cousins told Fox Digital. “I think this league, if I’ve learned anything in my 12 years, is that a lot of curveballs get thrown, and it’s hard to predict what happens next month. This injury taught me that, too.”

He added: “We’ll see when we get to March, how everything shakes out. But I think until then, it’s just waiting until March.”

The Falcons definitely are looking at quarterbacks, whether it’s using their first round pick to snag one or tapping into the free agent market. Cousins and Mayfield will be the biggest names.

Falcons GM Terry Fontenot discussed both the draft and free agent QB market with Atlanta reporters.

“Good depth, no doubt,“ Fontenot told Sports Talk Atlanta. “There’s some really good players and some different flavors so there’s different types of quarterbacks that can do some different things. It’s a really good group of quarterbacks this year not only in the draft but like I said free agency, via trade, there’s some really talented players available and we’re excited to attack that.”

So why does the money favor the Falcons if Cousins leaves the Vikings? It’s family. Cousins’ wife’s family lives near Atlanta.