Explore Falcons QB Kirk Cousins' fourth-quarter magic in 2024

• Among the best when the game is on the line: Kirk Cousins ​​has only committed one turnover-worthy play all year, which came with two minutes or less left in the fourth quarter.

• Close and late contests have allowed Cousins ​​to succeed: In a game where the point differential is three points or less and there are no more than 60 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Cousins' passing grade of 60.3 PFF ranks second in the NFL.

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Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Than that Atlanta Falcons After falling behind 30-27 with 1:21 left in the fifth game of the 2024 season, the pressure was palpable. Atlanta's defense got the stop it needed against them Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Attack, but there were no more timeouts left. No margin for error, quarterback Kirk Cousins and the organization would have to pull off another remarkable comeback in a thrilling division game.

Cousins ​​grabbed his pixie dust and did just that, leading Atlanta 46 yards down the field and into the kicker Younghoe Koo's reach for tying things up. And in overtime, the magic never stopped as the quarterback completed three passes in a row – including a 45-yard strike KhaDarel Hodge that won the competition overall.

Entering his first season in Atlanta, Cousins ​​has already developed a penchant for late-game heroics. He led three game-winning drives (two in prime time, no less) after scoring none all of last year. Honestly, all three are inextricably linked and have helped change the narrative of Falcons football from a team that quits late to a team that puts it on the line. And as PFF data shows, there haven't been many better quarterbacks in those tricky situations in close games than Cousins ​​this year.

With a minute or less left in a match, the Falcons' new $180 million man performed exceptionally well, especially compared to his peers. In a game where the point differential is three points or less and there are no more than 60 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Cousins' passing grade of 60.3 PFF ranks second in the NFL. Similarly, his passing score of 66.0 puts him in fourth place when the score rises to seven points with no more than a minute remaining. By traditional PFF scoring standards, these numbers may seem low, but given the difficulty of the context, they are actually very good.

Kirk Cousins' 2024 PFF game grades

Cousins' superhuman actions weren't just evident in the final minute of a game. The 36-year-old was also great when the clock hit the final two-minute warning: Cousins' passing grades in a seven-point game or a three-point game and the short amount of time remaining are both top-11 among all quarterbacks .

What's particularly fascinating is that you can almost see Cousins' cape developing over the course of the fourth quarter. The signal caller wasn't particularly good in the final frame of games – his passing grade of 59.4 PFF is just 19Th — but he ends up tied for ninth among all quarterbacks in passing grade with 2 minutes left, and then fifth with just 1 minute left.

Perhaps most impressively, Cousins ​​has only made one turnover-worthy play all year, with two minutes left in the fourth quarter, and none with just a minute left. Unlike most of his colleagues, the Falcons star had significantly more opportunities to make a mistake under these circumstances. Cousins' 27 dropbacks in two minutes in the fourth quarter are the most in the NFL by nine points, and his 18 dropbacks in a minute left are double the second-place scorer.

Against the Buccaneers on Thursday Night Football, Cousins ​​had an outstanding performance throughout the evening, especially as the spotlight grew. In the fourth quarter, Cousins ​​completed 11 of his 17 attempts for 101 yards and a touchdown, throwing one big but committing one turnover-worthy play (an interception on fourth-and-15, which was already unlikely). converted). His performances in the fourth quarter and overtime culminated in a passing grade of 83.5, Cousins' highest performance in his new uniform and his best since tearing his Achilles tendon last season.

Not everything has been perfect for the Falcons' emerging offense this season, as they have struggled to give their key playmakers adequate reps and find a regular rhythm. But what has worked fairly consistently is that Cousins ​​thrives in the worst moments of a game – a very encouraging sign for a hopeful playoff team that should only improve as the year goes on.