Why Kirk Cousins should be frustrated with Atlanta after drafting Penix Jr.

If you're Kirk Cousins the frustration from Friday's first-round selection is easy to understand. Your replacement has been drafted before you have ever taken a snap. This is on the heels of being handed a four-year deal that the team is clearly viewing as a 2-3 year investment. If they believe you are capable of starting all four years at a high level why did they draft Penix Jr. so soon?

The answer is obviously they plan to move off of Cousins as soon as possible if Penix Jr. is the quarterback they believe him to be. If they are right about Penix none of this matters long term and the pick will justify itself.

However, in the short, you have added a player 8th overall that won't see the field for two years if Cousins stays healthy. This in itself is more than enough for the veteran to be annoyed with his new front office. Add in the fact that Cousins wasn't aware of the pick until the team was on the clock and it somehow manages to get worse.

Any frustration the quarterback might have with the organization is more than justified. The team is inviting a quarterback debate that Cousins fought so hard to get away from in Washington. After finally playing to his potential in Minnesota the logical landing spot in Atlanta made sense for both sides.

This was with the understanding that the draft would play out just as it did and the top quarterback prospects were all out of reach. Atlanta, however, had a different view believing that the quarterback going overlooked was Michael Penix Jr.

This leads to the obvious question, if they believed this strongly in Penix why is Cousins on the roster? There were cheaper bridge options out there that would have allowed you to build out your roster with the cap space you spent on a quarterback you are already attempting to replace.

Even if the Falcons are right and Penix Jr. is a franchise guy the timing and way the move was made is questionable. You will waste at least two years of his rookie deal and simply be hoping you made the right call for two seasons as Kirk Cousins consistently is looking over his shoulder.

While the move is being compared to Green Bay drafting Jordan Love the situations are entirely different. The one thing that remains consistent is both franchises gave their veteran quarterbacks legitimate gripes with a front office that clearly isn't doing everything they can to win right now.