Would Bill Belichick welcome Kirk Cousins to the Atlanta Falcons?

Let's just assume that the Atlanta Falcons hired Bill Belichick to be their head coach. Will it happen? Maybe, maybe not, but let's name him the next head coach of the Falcons, for now.

The next step for this franchise would be finding a quarterback—whether that be in free agency or the draft. One name sticks out in this scenario and that is Kirk Cousins, who is coming off of a season-ending injury after playing the best football of his life. We have already heard from Cousins' mouth that he would play for Belichick, but would the interest be mutual?

Would Bill Belichick sign Kirk Cousins as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons?

The Atlanta Falcons hiring Bill Belichick would be a clear sign that the franchise wants to win from the moment the 2024 season kicks off. The hire would not afford the Falcons two or three years to develop a quarterback, along with the rest of the roster.

So, naturally, you are going to look at veteran options in free agency. The big name is Kirk Cousins (Russell Wilson will likely join him shortly). Cousins has already stated that he wouldn't turn down the opportunity to work with a Hall of Fame coach like Belichick.

We now have concrete proof that Cousins would be willing to sign with the Falcons but, as we all know, relationships are not one-sided.

Belichick has worked with all sorts of quarterbacks during his career—Drew Bledsoe, Vinny Testaverde, Tom Brady, Jimmy Garoppolo, Mac Jones, etc. Shockingly, he has opted for young signal callers.

Belichick has almost exclusively started quarterbacks he has drafted. He drafted Tom Brady in his first season as New England's head coach and names like Jimmy Garoppolo, Matt Cassel, Jacoby Brissett, Brian Hoyer, Bailey Zappe, and Mac Jones were all drafted by Belichick (minus UDFA Brian Hoyer) and started.

Belichick has only started two quarterbacks this century who he did not bring in as a rookie—Drew Bledsoe and Cam Newton. That is something interesting to consider. Certainly, Brady had a lot to do with that but it is still a fact that Belichick has preferred to start young, hand-picked QBs.

This isn't to say that he wouldn't sign Cousins. Becoming the head coach of the Falcons would be a completely new situation for the future Hall of Fame coach and it is hard to imagine him not pursuing Cousins.

Despite history saying otherwise, I would tend to believe that Cousins would be Belichick's top target if he were hired by the Atlanta Falcons.