Cousins: No beef with Falcons, focused on winning Super Bowl

Kirk Cousins was blindsided by the Falcons drafting Michael Penix Jr., but the veteran quarterback says there's no lingering bad blood with Atlanta about the team's shock decision.

"No, I don't think there can be," Cousins said on the "Bussin' With The Boys" podcast. "I don't think it's helpful. We're trying to win the Super Bowl, and it's hard enough. So let's all be on the same page, and let's go try to win the Super Bowl."

Cousins' agent, Mike McCartney, said on draft night that Penix's selection at No. 8 overall "was a big surprise," and that the Falcons didn't tell them about their plan until the team was on the clock.

McCartney added that Cousins - who signed a four-year, $180-million deal with Atlanta in March after six seasons with the Minnesota Vikings - was disappointed Atlanta didn't use its first-round pick to help the team this season.

"You're reminded again that there are things you control, and there are a lot of things you don't control," Cousins said.

Cousins also revealed that Minnesota warned him before the 2021 draft that the club was considering taking a quarterback in the first round. The Vikings ultimately didn't take a passer after five were selected in the first 15 picks, instead bringing in offensive tackle Christian Darrisaw at No. 23.

"This isn't like a foreign concept," Cousins said. "There's an awareness that this is the NFL. Anything can happen."

The 35-year-old is coming off a season-ending Achilles injury, but Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said Friday the veteran signal-caller is "pretty much full go" in noncontact offseason workouts.