Cousins (Achilles) said Wednesday during his introductory news conference with the Falcons that he's "optimistic to be full speed at practice" by the end of the offseason program in June, Tori McElhaney of the Falcons' official site reports.
Considering Cousins suffered a torn right Achilles' tendon Oct. 29 during a Week 8 win at Green Bay, he may be hard-pressed to be completely healthy once Atlanta completes mandatory minicamp. More realistically, he'll be able to handle most of the first-team reps during training camp and even get some run in the preseason as he transitions to the third team of his career. When he's healthy, Cousins will have ample skill talent at his disposal in the form of running backs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier, wideout Drake London and tight end Kyle Pitts. All four players have exactly one campaign with at least 900 yards from scrimmage, which should help Cousins dabble with 4,000-plus passing yards like he did seven times in eight seasons from 2015 through 2022.