Kirk Cousins cryptically told the Falcons exactly how he feels about his future

Earlier this season, there was talk of whether or not Kirk Cousins would ever start again, or if he even had enough in the tank to do so. But after Michael Penix Jr. went down, the Atlanta Falcons gave Cousins a second shot, and even though it hasn't been perfect, he's certainly silenced the doubters.

The Falcons are 2-2 since the 37-year-old took over as the starter and he is fresh off of his best start of the year against the Buccaneers. His future in Atlanta looks incredibly murky due to his contract situation, but he's certainly performed well enough to extend his career as a possible bridge starter.

Something that serves the veteran well at this stage of his career is his experience. While addressing the media on Wednesday, he was asked about the differences between coverage reads versus pure progression reads, which effectively confirmed it's harder than ever to be a quarterback in the NFL.

Even at 37, Kirk Cousins knows how to take the youngsters to school

When the four-time Pro Bowler entered the NFL, he said that he was taught to make reads based on the coverage the defense lines up in. But since defenses have started getting so good at disguising coverages, progression has become the easiest way for QB's to process what they're seeing.

He even said this knowledge dated back to his time at Michigan State, so the evolution of playing the position came in the middle of his career. And he admitted that Kevin O'Connell's usage of pure progression in Minnesota was difficult on him after growing accustomed to cutting the field in half.

However, Cousins could have another option in the cards down the line: coaching. The demand of intelligence at QB has seen guys like Josh McCown and Davis Webb turn to coaching after retiring, and they have been vital in helping J.J. McCarthy and Bo Nix prepare to face off with NFL defenses.

The Michigan State product's sheer knowledge of the game and experience with two vastly different types of processing the field is an asset many young quarterbacks don't have the luxury of learning, which means he could be the perfect mentor to the new generation of signal-callers.

With that said, that same mentorship is something he can teach as a bridge starter in 2026, and that's seen his chances of starting next year increase exponentially. But he's also clearly still got it, so this sent a message to potentially interested teams with the offseason looming.

Part of this feels like he was selling himself to teams that are looking for a veteran option, but it was never a secret that Captain Kirk's presence can benefit a quarterback room in more ways than one. And it's making the Falcons re-evaluate everything they thought they knew.