Falcons Raiders Kirk Cousins $8.7 million offset
The Raiders found a way to funnel $20 million to quarterback Kirk Cousins for 2026 while also sticking the Falcons with $8. 7 million of the bill. The Falcons, as we understand it, don't intend to make a stink about it.
The issue comes from a fully-guaranteed $10 million obligation for 2026, which vested when Cousins remained on the Atlanta roster in March 2025. (The " widespread expectation " that he'd be cut before it vested should have been much more narrow. ) With Cousins having a 2026 market value in excess of $10 million, the Falcons may have thought they'd avoid paying any of the final $10 million.
The Raiders had another plan. By giving Cousins a $1. 3 million salary in 2026 and a fully-guaranteed $10 million roster bonus due in March 2027, the Raiders found a way to give Cousins $20 million while only paying $11.
3 million of it. The Falcons remain on the hook for the remaining $8. 7 million.
While the precise language of the Cousins deal has yet to surface, it's believed that the contract will result in Cousins being released after one season. That would, in theory, allow him to do the same thing next year — getting the minimum from a new team, forcing the Raiders to pay the balance, and adding a fully-guaranteed roster bonus for 2028. Regardless, the Raiders found a loophole and used it.