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Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff WriterSep 12, 2024, 05:27 PM ET
Kirk Cousins is taking the majority of the blame for the Atlanta Falcons‘ Week 1 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. And it’s not because he’s yet to be all the way back from his Achilles injury, he said.
Cousins said Thursday that his right Achilles, which he tore in Week 8 of last season, feels “good” and his struggles Sunday had nothing to do with his health. Cousins had just 19 passing yards in the second half, the lowest second-half total of his career. The 13-year veteran said it was more about not having played in a while than it was an injury issue.
“I feel like I can move and push as I normally would,” Cousins said.
Cousins, 36, was 16-of-26 passing for 155 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions against the Steelers. He was sacked twice and pressured often by a defense led by T.J. Watt.
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It wasn’t just the numbers that made some believe Cousins was still injured. The Falcons ran the majority of their offense out of the pistol set, which Cousins has never done more than 10 times in a single game. Cousins was under center for only one play and the team didn’t run a single play-action pass, which has been Cousins’ bread and butter.
Analysts surmised that the pistol was a way to mask Cousins’ lack of mobility, which has not appeared to be an issue in practice all summer. Not so, Cousins said. The pistol was just something the Falcons and new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson wanted to implement. Cousins said his square stance in the pistol, similar to Peyton Manning’s, was what he used in 2012 with Washington when he was backing up Robert Griffin III.
“We started with pistol back in April,” Cousins said of the Falcons. “That was a big fundamental philosophy, talking with our offensive line coach, talking with our coaches about what we want to do schematically.”
Cousins said Atlanta coach Raheem Morris said the night before the game that if the offense played “clean and crisp” and avoided mistakes, the Falcons would win. Cousins agreed. Instead, he threw two interceptions, the team fumbled on a bad snap that ricocheted off tight end Ross Dwelley in motion, and there were several key penalties.
Kirk Cousins had just 19 passing yards in the second half Sunday, the lowest second-half total of his career. He said his struggles were not tied to last year’s Achilles injury, saying Thursday, “I feel like I can move and push as I normally would.” John Bazemore/AP
“I got to play better, I got to operate better and I was probably at the center of it not being clean and crisp,” Cousins said. “So, that frustrated me deeply, because I can place such an importance on that, in running the operation clean and crisp. And that’s what has to be better Monday.”
The Falcons go on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles for “Monday Night Football” in Week 2. Robinson said the team’s offensive system will continue to evolve based on matchups. He said he takes “full responsibility” for the offense not clicking against Pittsburgh.
“Certainly not concerned with Kirk’s mobility at all,” Robinson said. “Some of the run game and how we set it up, we’ll change those things week to week. We’re never married to one thing or the other. Those things will ever be evolving, based on the game plan of that week. But certainly like the pistol. We did it a ton with the Rams last year, and it’s something that gives you a great versatility across the board, so we’ll continue to find those spots to mix it in.”
