Malik Willis is close to irreplacable, but replace him the Green Bay Packers must.
Willis became arguably the league's best backup quarterback in Green Bay, but he signed with the Miami Dolphins in free agency.
Will the Packers draft Willis' replacement? Could they swing a trade for a former first-rounder like Anthony Richardson? What about Kirk Cousins? The veteran remains available in free agency. Speaking to reporters at the NFL Annual Meeting, GM Brian Gutekunst faced a question about Cousins.
"Yeah, we've discussed a lot of those options," Gutekunst said. "That's a guy who's got a lot of pelts on the wall in this league. So we've certainly discussed all those things kind of things, and we'll see where it goes."
Packers GM Brian Gutekunst doesn't close the door on signing Kirk Cousins this offseason
It's a classic Gutekunst answer. He didn't fully commit either way, but he didn't shut the door, either.
His answer about the Packers' current backups was less believable and straight out of the coachspeak textbook. When asked if Desmond Ridder and Kyle McCord could compete for the QB2 job, Gutekunst said it was "certainly a possibility."
Ron Burgundy "I don't believe you" meme.
Cousins presents a difficult decision. He offers a ton of NFL experience, having started 167 career games and thrown for 44,700 yards, 298 touchdowns, and 131 interceptions. Last season, he led the Atlanta Falcons to a 5-3 record in his eight starts, throwing for 1,721 yards, 10 touchdowns, and five interceptions. Not bad at all.
The problem is that Cousins isn't a mobile quarterback. We saw the value of Willis being able to take off and run. Cousins won't offer that. He was never a dual-threat quarterback in his prime, but his scrambling ability has declined further since suffering a torn Achilles in 2024.
Since the injury, Cousins has rushed for just seven yards. He does have a rushing TD, although that was a 1-yard QB sneak.
The other issue is that Cousins likely won't be cheap, even in a backup role.
But Gutekunst didn't shut the door. He will consider various options, including free agency, April's draft, and the potential trade market. For now, Cousins remains in play.