It’s a big deal for Atlanta, which is eager to stave off a controversy.

Despite all the rigamarole of the offseason, especially after the Atlanta Falcons took Michael Penix eighth overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, Kirk Cousins is the team’s starting quarterback in 2024. The only thing standing between that reality and the Falcons’ wishes is Cousins’ health, and happily, that doesn’t appear to be much of an obstacle.

Over the weekend, head coach Raheem Morris delivered an encouraging update on Cousins, who he said is near to being “full-go.”

There is still plenty of time between now and the start of the season, to say nothing of training camp, but us to see what that actually means for Cousins. But the fact that he has been throwing and the reports have been encouraging to this point offer optimism ahead of Week 1.

Kirk 👀 pic.twitter.com/HG4psnNSKF

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) May 2, 2024

That optimism is a very big deal, for obvious reasons. The Falcons drafted Penix to be their long-term franchise quarterback, but virtually nobody is suggesting they want him to be that guy now. The major money thrown Cousins’ way and the way the contract is structured both suggested at the time of signing and continue to suggest now that the Falcons are hoping Cousins is under center for 2024 and 2025, with the team winning gobs of games because of that. If he’s not available immediately this year, it opens the door a crack for a quarterback controversy in the short-term the Falcons do not.

But it seemed evident at the time of signing, even before the alleged tampering by the Falcons that they had done what they needed to do in order to feel good about where Cousins was in his recovery. Barring a setback you can never rule out, it appears Cousins is well on his way to being on the field for the season opener, giving the Falcons the peace of mind and the ability under center they prioritized after the last couple of grim seasons.