FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Rewind quarterback Kirk Cousins' career tape all the way back to 2012-13, and the Atlanta Falcons' loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday looks a lot less concerning.
Cousins has lined up in pistol with a square stance before. Week 1 was not a first-time attempt. Nor did it have anything to do with the Achilles tear from 2023 he has since recovered from.
A square stance is actually how Cousins began his career with the Washington Commanders, as a backup to Robert Griffin III. They operated in a pistol then, too.
Considering that was more than a decade ago, though, Cousins needed a refresher when presented with the idea of running the Falcons' offense out of the formation back in April.
"I watched some tape of Peyton Manning, who, when he was in the pistol, had some success with it," Cousins said Thursday. "He was in kind of a square stance; thought he looked pretty comfortable, had good rhythm to it. I thought, 'I'm going to try that.'"
Cousins also explained how he thinks the square stance is better in pistol because it opens him up more than his usual right-foot forward, making it easier to hand the ball off to a running back on either side. Quicker, too.
The square stance also ensures Cousins' back isn't turned to the defense as long.
And those two benefits are why Cousins took snaps the way he did last Sunday. It had nothing to do with any lingering injury hesitations.
"The Achilles feels good," Cousins said. "I feel like I can move and push as I normally would."
Cousins completed 16 of his 26 passes for 155 yards, two interceptions and a touchdown against the Steelers. He was also sacked twice and hit seven times. Apart from some normal neck stiffness, Cousins felt fine Monday.
Offensive coordinator Zac Robinson double-downed on Cousins' health status when his own play-calling decisions were questioned.
"Certainly not concerned with Kirk's mobility at all," Robinson said. "He's looked great out there. He's moving around really well today. So, no concerns at all."
Robinson's background with the Los Angeles Rams is a big reason the Falcons operated in pistol for a majority of last Sunday's game.
In fact, according to Next Gen Stats, the Rams ran more plays out of pistol than the Falcons in Week 1. The Rams had 62.2% of their plays run from pistol. The Falcons had 53.1%.
"That was something that, last year with the Rams, we realized like man, you really have kind of everything at your disposal because you're in the dot, you kind of have your play pass, you have everything, you have your drop-back pass still intact there," Robinson said. "So, I like what the versatility of the pistol does bring. But again, we'll continue to mix it and it'll be based on a week-to-week basis."
One game down. Sixteen to go. At least.
It's important to keep that perspective, too. Last Sunday was Cousins' first game with Atlanta and Robinson's first regular-season game as play-caller. Mistakes, such as the turnovers and penalties, can happen as the entire offense tries to mesh in live action. The key is not allowing them, as Robinson put it, to snowball in the future.
Because what's next isn't easy. The Falcons have their first Monday Night Football game since 2020 on tap against the Philadelphia Eagles. Cousins, Robinson and the Falcons as a whole need to turn the page from Week 1 to 2.
"Those guys are going to get better with each other," Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said of Cousins and Robinson. "The thing I loved about it is the accountability of both. There's not one person that's going to sit up here and blame anybody. Both of those guys took accountability, myself included. I've got to be better for those guys. We've got to be better together. And we've got to go find a way to win."
