Vikings' Kirk Cousins split looks smarter with every Falcons snap

Atlanta Falcons QB Kirk Cousins | Logan Bowles/GettyImagesEver since Kirk Cousins was benched by the Atlanta Falcons last season, fans of the Minnesota Vikings have been waiting for the next shoe to drop for their former starting quarterback.

Everyone expected Cousins to get traded, if not outright released, this offseason, with Michael Penix Jr. fully entrenched as the Falcons’ new QB1. Vikings fans even wondered if a Cousins reunion with Minnesota would happen after their team traded Sam Howell to the Philadelphia Eagles in late August.

The Falcons surprisingly took a different path — holding onto Cousins and his $45 million per-year contract as the most expensive backup in NFL history,…