The Pittsburgh Steelers will open the regular season on the road against the Atlanta Falcons. Like the Steelers, the Falcons have experienced large changes with their roster and coaching staff this offseason. QB Kirk Cousins leads the list for the Falcons of their most impactful signings as they gave him $180 million over four years, including $100 million guaranteed. Coming off an Achilles injury, Cousins’ status has been up in the air for the start of the season, but he told the media today during their preseason game that he will be playing, according to Grant Gordon on NFL.com.
“I’ll be ready to go Week 1,” Cousins said. “I’ve been going full speed now for all of camp, just getting better every week.”
He had been practicing in full, but Achilles injuries are tricky to work back from. Even trickier at 35 years old. The injury was suffered in Week 8 last season in late October while he was a member of the Minnesota Vikings. Prior to his injury, he led the team to a 4-4 record completing 216 of his 311 attempts for 2331 passing yards, 18 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions.
If things go as planned and Russell Wilson is the starter for the Steelers in Week 1, it will be the battle of the 35-year-old quarterbacks who switched teams this offseason.
This game will also be the return of Arthur Smith to his former team where he was the head coach from 2021 to 2023. Their defense should be well aware of what his offenses look like. On the flipside, Smith should be well prepared to scheme against their defense.
There are high expectations for the new-look Falcons, and Kirk Cousins is a big part of that.
The Cousins-Wilson rivalry goes back to college where the two of them played in the Big 10 Championship game. Wilson led the Wisconsin Badgers to a 42-39 win over the Michigan State Spartans in that game.
