Falcons’ Blank: ‘Procedural Mistakes’ Led to Tampering amid Kirk Cousins Contract

Doric SamJuly 30, 2024

Todd Kirkland/Getty Images

After the Atlanta Falcons received punishments from the NFL due to tampering with quarterback Kirk Cousins prior to signing him to a contract this offseason, team owner Arthur Blank accepted that the franchise was at fault.

While speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Blank admitted that the Falcons made some missteps on their way to landing Cousins.

“So, the tampering situation, we were advised by the NFL that we didn’t dot every ‘I’ and cross every ‘T,’ despite our attempt to do that,” Blank said, per Pro Football Talk’s Myles Simmons. “There were a couple of procedural mistakes, I think, that were made by the organization.”

As part of its penalties from the NFL, Atlanta was fined $250,000 and general manager Terry Fontenot was fined $50,000. The team also forfeited its fifth-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

“We fully cooperated with the NFL, as we always do in any sort of investigation,” Blank said. “They found there were certain things were deficient in the way we handled things with Kirk.”

Cousins was signed to a four-year, $180 million deal on the first day of the new league year in March. The NFL later launched an investigation and determined that tampering was committed with Cousins, wide receiver Darnell Mooney and tight end Charlie Werner.

Blank added that the team has made an effort to ensure that it doesn’t find itself in this situation again.

“We’ve addressed those things internally,” he said. “Find something that’s a problem, you fix it and make sure it doesn’t happen again, and that’s our attitude about it. The NFL is certainly doing their job and doing it well.”

The Falcons are certainly hoping that the addition of Cousins will get the team back to playoff contention. The four-time Pro Bowler will stabilize an offense that has a talented crop of players like running back Bijan Robinson, receiver Drake London and tight end Kyle Pitts.