FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Over the bye week, Kirk Cousins took time away from football in his hometown of Saugatuck, Michigan. Still, even sitting around a bonfire, the quarterback ruminated on the Falcons' last couple of losses as the flames crackled.
This isn't anything new for Cousins, he often holds himself to an impossible standard of perfection. That's why he's worked with team psychologists in the past and continues to in his first season with Atlanta.
"I think quarterback is such a mental position, certainly. I think there's always something you can learn and glean. It helps to just have good communication and get good input," Cousins said. "I've kind of surrounded myself with a lot of people over the years who I feel I can lean on when you're kind of in a tough spot or even when you're riding high to be able to kind of stay steady and try to be as consistent as you can with your production, regardless of what may be going on around you."
Overall, Cousins hasn't had a season that requires a lot of nitpicking. He's thrown for more than 2,800 passing yards and 17 touchdowns in 11 games thus far. He's earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors twice in Week 5 and Week 8.
Still, the last two games, losses to the New Orleans Saints and Denver Broncos, haven't been up to par — hence the rumination. Cousins didn't throw a touchdown in either of those matchups, the first time in his 13-year career that he's failed to throw for a score in back-to-back weeks. He took three sacks, threw an interception and had a passer rating below 80 in those games.
When Cousins returned to the building, gearing up to face the Los Angeles Chargers' No. 1 scoring defense, he was refreshed and focused. Like usual Cousins had extensive notes in his notebook to go over with offensive coordinator Zac Robinson. Instead of bantering with neighboring teammates in the locker room Wednesday, Cousins was locked in to the offensive script on his phone, reading aloud his reads and going through his checks.
"He's probably one of the more fun people that I've been around coming off byes, or mini byes. Going into anything big, he puts his thoughts together, he sits it down on the paper," Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said. "I'm sure he consults with Julie [Cousins], his wife, and then he's able to come in and absolutely attack. Whether they're issues or things we do well, things he wants to keep going, get a State of the Union for me — he's awesome in those ways because everybody wants to have that relationship with their quarterback, and Kirk won't let you not have that relationship with him."
The conversations with Cousins and the offense after the week off have been about execution and getting a handle on self-inflicted wounds like penalties. They're still a top-10 offensive team in multiple categories, it's just a matter of getting back to their identity.
"It's just football, and you get reactionary over one game," Robinson said. "You take a look at the big picture and you're like, man, we've done some really good things. Here's how we can tighten it up. So, that's been the biggest message with Kirk and the rest of the guys."
The offense will have the challenge of trying to return to form against a tough defense. The Chargers rank top five in points allowed, total yards, first downs and red zone conversion rate. However, Los Angeles has given up at least 25 points in its last two games against the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals. Both opponents are top-10 scoring teams, while the Falcons are tied at No. 16.
"I think you look at (the Chargers), they're really sound with what they do. So, it's an execution game. We've got to do our stuff better than they do their stuff. They're sound across the board," Robinson said. "Certainly last game we were not up to that standard. The Saints game, we moved the ball pretty efficiently, just didn't finish. So, we were in a good spot up until the Denver game. That was kind of when things just didn't go very well, but we just have got to pick back up where we left off before that game, and then get back to the things that are making us a successful offense."
Before Week 10, the Falcons offense was rolling. They put up at least 25 points — oftentimes more than 30 points — in five of seven games at one point. They understand that now is the time to start trending upward, rather than allowing the two-game losing streak to swell and snowball.
"I do know how long the NFL season is with 17 games and the need on the bye week to kind of recharge so that you are ready for whatever games you have left. So, I kept reminding myself of that this past week, and I thought it was a great week," Cousins said. "That was a great week for me, for my family, and I think we handled the week in a way that should help me feel really good about this stretch run here."
