The rumors were juicy. Kirk Cousins, set to be released by the Falcons, was supposedly sliding into a TV analyst chair. It was the perfect ending. A 37-year-old quarterback hanging up his cleats and stepping into a studio instead. The only problem? None of it is true.

“[Kirk] Cousins wants to play this season; I was told the rumors of him potentially retiring to take a TV job are incorrect,” ESPN’s Dan Graziano reported on May 1. “But he could be selective about his next destination.”

Cousins has been vocal this offseason about his plans to keep playing instead of hosting on any network. He has made it clear that he wants to be back on the field. But he did acknowledge that until March, he wasn’t planning on making any decisions.

“I would love to keep playing,” Cousins told GMFB:OT in February. “I feel rejuvenated after playing last season, and I’m excited to see kind of where it can go from here.”

Even with those intentions set, the veteran quarterback isn’t walking into just any situation, considering he will be released by the team on March 11.

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Falcons general manager Ian Cunningham had earlier revealed during the NFL Scouting Combine. “I did talk to Kirk and his representation, Mike McCartney, letting them know that we will release him on the first day of the league year.”

“We just felt that that was out of respect for Kirk and Mike, his agent, and what’s he’s done in his career, just that we owe that to him to allow him some clarity going into free agency.”

Jun 3, 2024; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (18) is interviewed after Falcons OTA at the Falcons Training facility. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY SportsGraziano’s report flagged that Cousins is expected to be “selective” about his landing spot. And that shouldn’t surprise anyone. He has lived through this rodeo more times than he probably wanted.

“There’s been a lot of years of one-year contracts, and what’s going to happen next, and will you get traded? So I guess I’ve kind of lived it. I’ve learned to be pretty open-minded. And here we are again,” Cousins added.

According to NFL analyst Luke Hubbard at EssentiallySports, there are several realistic options for Cousins on the open market. The Jets could pursue him. And the fit would likely benefit Cousins as he would walk in as the clear starter. Whether Cousins would actually want to play for the Jets is a different question entirely.

Another team in the conversation is the Raiders, who are expected to draft Fernando Mendoza and would need a veteran to develop him. Beyond that, the Vikings have also entered the mix. The balance could tilt in their favor quickly, given Cousins’ connections to the franchise from his previous six seasons there.

Still, it wouldn’t have come entirely out of nowhere if Cousins had chosen the broadcast booth. He has done this before. Twice, in fact.

With Kirk Cousins out of the picture, CBS and NBC are scrambling at the desk

Kirk Cousins first stepped into the studio in January 2025, when he appeared as a guest analyst on ESPN’s Postseason NFL Countdown. Then this past January, Matt Ryan left the CBS desk to take the job of president of football operations with the Falcons. That’s when Cousins stepped in as a guest analyst on The NFL Today panel. 

For CBS Sports, this is yet another rebuild at the desk. When Ryan joined the network as a full-time analyst in 2024, that was the same year longtime contributors Boomer Esiason and Phil Simms departed. Now Ryan is gone too, and the network is once again looking for a voice to anchor that panel.

According to Front Office Sports, names like Pete Carroll, Philip Rivers, Mike Tomlin, Russell Wilson, and Jameis Winston are all being floated as candidates to replace Ryan. As for NBC, they also have a similar hole to fill.

As reported by Andrew Marchand of The Athletic, Tony Dungy is “likely out as a regular on Football Night in America” after 17 seasons with the network. NBC is eyeing a full revamp of its pregame show, and Dungy’s traditional style doesn’t fit the new vision the network is chasing.

What has made this worse is how the change is being handled internally. According to Awful Announcing, members of the Football Night in America team have not been contacted by NBC directly. They have been “hearing about potential changes through media reports.” 

The tension inside the building isn’t helping. Dungy’s reported exit has also gotten tangled up in the broader controversy surrounding the Hall of Fame snub of Bill Belichick.

So, both networks are in the middle of retooling, old-guard voices are cycling out, and the next wave of analysts is being sorted. As for Kirk Cousins, he had a shot at jumping in and passed. For now, at least, he still has a helmet to strap on.