Kirk Cousins turned the Falcons into contenders

The NFL is the quarterback’s league. You’ve probably read or heard it hundreds, maybe thousands of times. And you know what? It’s true.

A quarterback is capable of changing -for better or worse- the face of an entire franchise. The two most recent cases are Tom Brady and Matthew Stafford, who had an immediate impact and won Super Bowls in their first year with the Buccaneers and Rams.

The Falcons expect that same immediate impact with Kirk Cousins, the veteran quarterback that Atlanta signed in free agency and who, for the moment, has the Falcons in first place in the NFC South with a record of 5-3 and 4-0 against divisional rivals.

Cousins, a beast so far

Cousins has started eight games and has completed 185 of 271 passes for 2,106 yards and 14 touchdowns, with a rating of 97.8.

Cousins is also the second-best quarterback in the NFL on third down, behind only Jared Goff of the Detroit Lions. He has completed 70.8% of his passes, with 476 yards, five touchdowns, no interceptions and a 117.2 rating.

Last week, against Tampa Bay, he completed 23 of 29 for 276 yards, four touchdowns and a 145.9 rating, his highest rating since September 24, 2017 (150.7), when he was in Washington. He also threw three touchdown passes of 30 or more yards for the first time in his career, and it was also the first time a Falcons quarterback has connected on three end zone passes in a first half since Matt Ryan did it on Sept. 20, 2020.

In the first game against Tampa Bay on Oct. 3, Cousins passed for 509 yards (most in the NFL so far) and if he totals 394 passing yards this Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys, he will join Ryan as the only quarterbacks in franchise history to total 2,500 yards in the first nine weeks of a season.

A new challenge against a Cowboys team in disgrace

The Falcons’ offense has the lowest three-and-out percentage in the league, with just seven in 81 total drives (8.6%).

The Cowboys’ defense is mediocre against the pass, but is second to last against the run, allowing an average of 154.6 rushing yards per game.

The Falcons will try to run first and pass later, which certainly benefits Cousins, one of the most effective quarterbacks after the play-action.

Sunday marks the 29th game between Atlanta and Dallas, in a series that dates back to 1966 and which the Cowboys lead 17-11.

But these two teams are walking in opposite directions. On one side are the Cowboys, who are paying the price after a disastrous offseason; on the other side are the Falcons, who are looking to consolidate their lead in the South and prove that they are not just pretenders in the NFC.

Pick: Falcons 34-24 Cowboys

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