Falcons’ Kirk Cousins climbs the charts while trying to get some wins

FLOWERY BRANCH — With Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. out for the rest of the season after knee surgery, Kirk Cousins has settled back into the starting lineup.

He made his second start in a row last week against the Jets and delivered a quality start in the 27-24 loss at MetLife Stadium on Sunday. He guided the Falcons to a 24-10 win over the Saints on Nov. 23.

On short notice, he started against the Dolphins in a 34-10 loss Oct. 26.

Cousins hopes to pick it up a notch or two when the Falcons (4-8) face the Seahawks (9-3) at 1 p.m. Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

“Just putting together the plan, coaches put together a good plan,” Cousins said. “Just got to lock it in now. All get on the same page.”

The Falcons have been pleased with Cousins thus far. He was the starter for most of last season, but was demoted with three games to play after he was injured and threw a rash of interceptions.

“Kirk is playing good ball,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said.

After a bumpy start against the Jets, Cousins guided the Falcons to a fourth-quarter lead that the defense couldn’t hold. He was victimized by dropped passes in his bid to get the Falcons into field-goal range for the win.

The Jets’ Nick Folk made a walk-off 56-yard field goal for the victory.

Cousins did his part. He completed 21 of 33 passes for 234 yards (63.6%) and one touchdown for a 94.8 passer rating.

He tossed a 9-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver David Sills V to give the Falcons a 24-17 lead with 8:46 to play. It was his 291st career passing touchdown, which moved him past Johnny Unitas (290) and tied him with Warren Moon for the 16th-most in NFL history.

Cousins needs four more touchdown passes to move past Carson Palmer (294) and into the top 15. John Elway is 14th with 300 and Georgia Bulldogs legend Fran Tarkenton is 13th with 342.

Cousins is fourth on the active players list behind Aaron Rodgers (522), Matthew Stafford (409) and Russell Wilson (353). Tom Brady holds the all-time record at 649.

“He’s gone out the last two weeks and really operated at a very high level, meaning not turning the football over, really getting our offense going and really moving the football down the field,” Morris said.

While the offense continues to struggle on third downs, they have operated well once reaching the red zone.

“Kirk has done a nice job of really stepping in, taking over that leadership role,” Morris said. “The one Miami game, I don’t think he was in a great spot when he’s coming in as a backup that way, or so many unknowns involved. He’s shown that over the last two weeks, being able to go out there with the full boatload of preparation and all that entails, to be able to go out there and really execute at a high level.”

Cousins leaned on running back Bijan Robinson and tight end Kyle Pitts, but he moved the ball around to five other receivers against the Jets. He’d like to get his connection with Darnell Mooney to improve.

“I’ve enjoyed playing with them, I know that,” Cousins said. “I enjoy any time your receivers are professionals, and really the details matter to them. That always gives me a sense of comfort when I step in the huddle.”

The bond is coming from playing together.

“We had a play at the end of the first half — I believe it scored,” Cousins said. “I think it was the play Tyler (Allgeier) scored on. I said the motion incorrectly, and the huddle was a little rushed. … (Sills) looked at me and said, ‘That’s wrong. I’ll fix it.’ I kind of said to myself as I walked to the line of scrimmage, thank goodness.”

With the Falcons trying to scramble into field-goal position, Cousins was 1-of-5 over the last two drives. There were three drops, by Pitts, Sills and Mooney.

“He has done a nice job giving us a chance to win and no better explanation than the last three plays,” Morris said. “He puts you in a position to win. He gave us a chance. We’ve got to make those plays.”