Cousins ignores Penix plan, says ready to make it work for Falcons

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — Kirk Cousins shrugged off any hard feelings Tuesday over Atlanta Falcons draft pick Michael Penix Jr., insisting he’s ready to compete and doesn’t think that there will be problems in the shift room.

The cousins spoke afterwards the two quarterbacks worked together during an offseason workout at the Falcons’ suburban complex in Flowery Branch.

“There will always be competition in this league,” Cousins said. “You have to go out and earn it. I control what I can control and I also understand that there are many things I cannot control. I learned a long time ago that you need to focus on what you can control.

Cousins was one of biggest free agent signings of the offseason, agreeing to a four-year, $180 million deal with the Falcons that includes $100 million in guaranteed money. He was considered the missing piece on a team that has had six straight losing seasons since its last playoff appearance in 2017.

Then, in the project’s most shocking decision, the Falcons selected Penix with the No. 8 overall selection, which clearly caught Cousins off guard.

He didn’t really approve of Penix’s selection, dodging the question of whether he would have signed with the Falcons if he knew they were planning to draft another quarterback in the first round.

“I don’t really deal with what-ifs,” Cousins said. “We could go down this path for a long time and in many ways. This is of no use to us. I am excited about this opportunity. I think it’s a true privilege to play quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons. I’m trying to take advantage of the opportunity that I’ve been given with the way I work every day and the way we play this fall.

The Falcons have insisted that Cousins is their No. 1 quarterback at the moment, while Penix is being groomed for a future starting role. The 13-year veteran said he was determined to make a potentially uncomfortable situation work for everyone.

“The shift room is a work force for each other,” he said. “We all work together to help each other. This dynamic has always been there and will always be there.

Even though he has yet to play a game for the Falcons, Cousins already finds himself at the center of two potentially troubling issues.

In addition to a potential quarterback controversy, the Falcons are also under investigation by the league for possible tampering with quarterback comments. during his introductory press conferencewhen he talked about speaking with players and staff members in Atlanta before his deal was finalized.

The cousins answered some questions the tampering probesaying he didn’t want to talk about it while the league was in the middle of its investigation, although he indicated there was no wrongdoing in his eyes.

“The league is still going through this, so I’m going to let them do it. But there’s not much to it,” Cousins said, later adding that “if I said anything in the press conference, it was so innocent.”

The cousins showed few signs of the torn right Achilles tendon that cut short his final season with the Minnesota Vikings. He said the injury isn’t 100 percent healed, but he’s been able to do everything he wanted during practice and hopes to be ready to go when training camp begins.

“It’s progressing well,” said Cousins, who is six and a half months into a rehabilitation period that was expected to last up to nine months. “There is still a lot to do.”

As for his dealings with a high-profile backup, Cousins insisted it was nothing new in his football career.

He remembers leaving high school with Michigan State, only to learn shortly after that the Spartans were also offering a scholarship to future NFL quarterback Nick Foles. After his college career, he was a fourth-round pick by Washington, which had already selected Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III second overall.

“I learned pretty quickly as a freshman in college that you have to compete,” Cousins said. “That’s the way it’s always been and it’s always going to be that way. This corresponds to my football background and not the exception.

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