Could Vikings eventually give Kirk Cousins an escape from Falcons?

The Minnesota Vikings clearly want 2024 first-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy to be their 2025 Week 1 starting quarterback after he spent his entire rookie season recovering from a full meniscus repair. 

Meanwhile, Kirk Cousins is still looking for an escape from the Atlanta Falcons after he lost his starting job to 2024 rookie Michael Penix Jr. this past December. 

On Monday, The Athletic's Josh Kendall wrote briefly about the possibility of Cousins reuniting with a Vikings team that employed the veteran signal-caller from 2018 through the 2023 season.

"Minnesota didn’t draft a quarterback," Kendall wrote of the Vikings' actions during the 2025 player-selection process. "Instead, it traded for Seahawks backup Sam Howell, who started 18 games in two seasons in Washington. That gives the Vikings at least an option if J.J. McCarthy isn’t ready to be the starter for health or performance issues. They also have Brett Rypien under contract."

The contract Cousins signed to join the Falcons last offseason included a full no-trade clause, and previous reports indicated that he would only relocate his family this spring or summer if a different club promised him its starting job. Now that this year's draft has come and gone, Cousins may struggle to find such an opportunity if the Vikings don't come calling. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers reportedly "firmly believe" future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers will soon sign a contract to be their next starter. Meanwhile, the Cleveland Browns now have Joe Flacco, 2022 first-round draft pick Kenny Pickett, 2025 third-round choice Dillon Gabriel and 2025 fifth-round selection Shedeur Sanders in their quarterback room. 

New Orleans Saints starter Derek Carr recently acknowledged he is dealing with a shoulder injury. The Saints seemingly responded to that setback by selecting Louisville's Tyler Shough, arguably "the most pro-ready" quarterback in this year's draft class, with the 40th overall pick. Additionally, it's difficult to imagine Atlanta would happily hand a starting quarterback to a division rival at a reasonable price after the Falcons have thus far shown with their actions that they are willing to keep Cousins as Penix's backup through this coming fall. 

The Vikings could silence talk about a potential trade for Cousins by naming McCarthy their starter at any time. Until they do, outsiders will continue to wonder if some veteran players who are part of a win-now team that went 14-3 this past season believe a healthy Cousins would be a better option than whatever McCarthy is/isn't ahead of training camp.