FLOWERY BRANCH — Former NFL cornerback Richard Sherman is an expert on ruptured Achilles tendons, and he didn’t like what he saw from Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins in the team’s season opener Sunday.
On Nov. 19, 2017, Sherman suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon in a 22-16 win over the Cardinals.
“Coming back from an Achilles is very tough,” said Sherman, who’s now a “Thursday Night Football” analyst with Prime. “It’s tough to get your confidence back, and that’s the thing that I’m concerned about (after) watching that game, that Atlanta Falcons game.”
Cousins played the entire game. He started off fine in the first half, but ended up with two interceptions and a 59 passer rating.
Cousins insisted, again, that he’s fine.
“The Achilles feels good,” Cousins said. “I feel like I can move and push as I would normally would.”
Sherman didn’t like what he saw from Cousins in the game.
“I’m concerned about what they are doing in the pistol,” Sherman said. “Not because schematically I’m concerned because it works really well. They do a great job. I’m concerned that they are doing it because they don’t think Kirk can get back there quick enough to hand the ball off for outside zone (runs) and stuff like that.”
In the pistol, Cousins has a shorter route to the handoff.
“They are getting him halfway to the handoff,” Sherman said. “That’s where I’m getting concerned. They are catering the offense not to his skill set, per se, but to the injury, his rehabilitation and things like that.”
The Falcons insist that Cousins is recovered from his surgery which was completed Nov. 1. But alarms went off with the formations and Cousins’ desire not to put his surgically repaired right foot in the ground.
“If that’s happening then you might be better off with playing (rookie Michael) Penix (Jr.), but they have 50 million reasons not to play Penix,” Sherman said. “So, that’s where (general manager) Terry Fontenot is going to be in a bit of bind that even if Kirk can’t play at a high of a level as he’s played in the past, he’s not going to be able to replace him because you paid him $50 million (in a signing bonus).
“You’re between a rock and a hard place. The rookie gives you a better chance to win, but you just paid Kirk, and you don’t sit $50 million on the bench even if he’s not 100%.”
Cousins’ first game with the Falcons didn’t pass Sherman’s visual test.
“The frustrations that we saw and a lot of the things expected to see,” Sherman said. “Kirk is not driving the ball off his back foot like we would expect. There were even some times where I saw him drop his heel into the ground and kind of stumble away.”
Again, Sherman has been there. After the surgery, he went on to play four more seasons and made the Pro Bowl in 2019 for the sixth time.
“You don’t want to step on that foot all the time,” Sherman said. “You don’t want to drive the ball off your foot into the ground because you’re worried that your Achilles might pop. It may be subconsciously that you’re doing it, but I saw it on the field.”
Cousins said he’s cleared those hurdles already.
“It takes time, but I feel like we kind of crossed that threshold a while back,” Cousins said. “I think what you have to get back into is the red jersey is off. It’s live football. Not from an Achilles standpoint, but from just from playing quarterback standpoint. You have to get back into that mode with practice, you try to simulate the best you can. It’s always hard to create that.”
Cousins said too much was made of his footwork. He said he played in the pistol when he was with Washington when he backed up Robert Griffin III. He set his feet parallel to each other back then, over 10 years ago.
He said the Falcons started installing the pistol formation in April.
Cousins has his supporters as he’ll try to fight back from the injury and a poor initial outing.
“I was a little disappointed with that opening game that they played,” said former Falcons tight end and Pro Football Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez, a TNF analyst. “I thought ol’ Kirk was going to play a lot better. I love me some Kirk Cousins. I thought he was going to go out there and shred ‘em up with that offense.”
In addition to Cousins coming back from injury, the Falcons have a new offensive coordinator in Zac Robinson and have installed a new offense.
“It’s a work in progress,” Gonzalez said. “You’ve got to give them some time. First game of the season. New system. New teammates. New guys throwing to.”
There were some bright spots for the Falcons.
“I thought Bijan Robinson played really well,” Gonzalez said. “I think they need to get Drake London more involved.”
Gonzalez, no surprise here, wants to see the Falcons lean on tight end Kyle Pitts more.
“I’m waiting for this breakout season of that tight end down there,” Gonzalez said. “Kyle Pitts had 1,000 yards his first season, and I thought he was going to be it . That guy. The guy at that position. Everybody is kind of waiting for him to break out. I’ve got a feeling … Kirk knows how to throw it to the tight end. They need to lean on him a little bit more and start using him.”
How quickly Cousins rebounds and the offense comes together will be key to this season.
“Atlanta has big plans,” Gonzalez said. “They’ve been making some big moves. They’ve got Michael Penix Jr., though. I know that is probably going to start rumbling if Kirk can’t go out there and get it going for them. I love Kirk. He’s definitely capable. When he’s on, he can play with the best of them. He can get that offense going.”
Andrew Whitworth, who played 16 years in the NFL, was with the Rams from 2017-21. Zac Robinson came to the Falcons from the Rams.
“He’s a young, bright mind,” said Whitworth, who works the pregame, halftime and postgame on TNF telecasts. “He’s a guy that has (worked) under the tutelage of Sean McVay. You’re going to see that (Kyle) Shanahan/McVay system come out as this offense grows.”
Whitworth suspects that Robinson and Cousins are working through some issues.
“How Zac is going to call a game,” Whitworth said. “The plays they want to execute every week. I think maybe you expect them to jump out fast, but maybe not. Maybe it’s going to take them some time. I was disappointed. I really expected more in their first week.”
Whitworth has seen the pistol formation work with a non-running veteran quarterback.
“I think when you look at it, there was a lot of pistol in that game, which is really something that McVay and (Matthew) Stafford did at the end of last season really after their bye week, they got hot offensively,” Whitworth said. “That seems to be something the Falcons want to do with Kirk Cousins.”
Get all the news about the Atlanta Braves delivered each morning. Sign up for Braves Report.
Local News
Comments / 0