Kirk Cousins is stuck in a horrific, and historic, four-game slump

Kirk Cousins has had a rough month and a half.

Since throwing four touchdown passes in a November 3 win against the Cowboys, the Falcons quarterback has thrown none in four games. He also has thrown eight interceptions.

As noted by D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Cousins is the first starting quarterback with an 0-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio over four straigt regular-season games since Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger more than 18 years ago.

Roethlisberger had none and nine in a four-game regular-season stretch that started in the final week of 2005 and continued through his third game in 2006. (In the intervening postseason, the Steelers won the Super Bowl.)

Cousins, per Ledbetter, also is mired in the first four-game stretch of his career with passer ratings in each effort below 80. For the year, Cousins has finished under 80 in seven of 13 games.

His full-season passer rating is 89.0, with 3,396 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 15 interceptions. It's not much better than 2023 Week 1 starter Desmond Ridder, who in 15 games with 13 starts had 12 touchdown passes, 12 interceptions, and a passer rating of 83.4.

Ridder's showing got him traded out of town. For Cousins, who received $100 million fully guaranteed when signing in March, it points to a one-and-done scenario, with Michael Penix Jr. taking over in 2025, and Cousins traded or released.

If Cousins can hold Penix off for that long.

Falcons coach Raheem Morris said this week that Penix will play when it’s time. For many Falcons fan, the ticking is louder than Mona Lisa Vito’s biological clock.