In the annual anonymous NBA player poll released by Sam Amick and Josh Robbins of The Athletic, one player named Kirk Cousins as their favorite current athlete outside of basketball.
When asked to explain, the player mentioned Cousins’ lucrative projected career earnings as well as his lack of playoff success.
“Kirk Cousins because he gets paid and doesn’t have to win or don’t have to do anything and made $400 million off of one playoff win,” he said. “Legend.”
The veteran quarterback recently signed a four-year deal worth $180 million with the Atlanta Falcons in March, which includes $100 million guaranteed (via Spotrac). If Cousins plays out the entire contract, he’ll surpass $400 million in career earnings.
While the 35-year-old has made multiple postseason appearances for two separate teams throughout his career, he’s only won one playoff game in four starts. This occurred during his 2019 season with the Minnesota Vikings, defeating the New Orleans Saints in the wild-card round.
Per Spotrac, Cousins ranks No. 4 among all active NFL players in career earnings. However, it’s worth noting that the three players above him are quarterbacks who have previously won a Super Bowl.
Cousins is coming off a year that started off promising before a torn Achilles ended his season on Oct. 29. Prior to the injury, he completed 69.5 percent of his throws for 2,331 yards and 18 touchdowns compared to just five interceptions.
Now, he’ll attempt to help the Falcons make the playoffs for the first time since the 2017 season. Atlanta finished with a record of 7-10 in 2023 and narrowly missed the postseason, an impressive feat considering the team owned the league’s seventh-worst scoring offense.
Kirk finds @Espn_Jordan in the end zone, and the @Vikings take the lead!
📺: #KCvsMIN on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/LxW25sxPWA pic.twitter.com/6lpU5caBKA— NFL (@NFL) October 8, 2023
