There was a lot left to be desired from Kirk Cousins' Atlanta Falcons debut, an 18-10 loss at home to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Atlanta's prized offseason acquisition didn't exactly live up to the immediate expectations an $180 million contract might bring, finishing 16-of-26 passing for 155 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, one of which thwarted a comeback attempt late in the fourth quarter.
"I was disappointed," Cousins said after the defeat, via team transcript. "Certainly disappointed. You always go out there with an expectation that you're going to play at a high level, and we didn't play up to our standard today."
Cousins, who played his first game since suffering a torn Achilles last season with the Minnesota Vikings, led a scoring drive (field goal) in his first drive at the helm, but his eighth pass attempt of the game intended for Drake London went low and fell into the hands of Steelers safety DeShon Elliott, resulting in points for the Steelers in what would be a low-scoring affair.
The 36-year-old quarterback redeemed himself by the first half's end, completing all seven pass attempts of an 85-yard drive that ended with tight end Kyle Pitts celebrating in the end zone, but things got worse for Cousins and Co. in the second half.
Center Drew Dalman's bad snap resulted in a lost fumble during the Falcons' opening possession of the third quarter, ending a drive that entered Pittsburgh territory. The Falcons proceeded to gain just one first down in their next three possessions, allowing the Steelers to chip away and control the flow of the game.
Down, 15-10, with a little over three minutes to play, an opportunity was there for Cousins to lead a game-winning drive but an ill-advised throw toward Ray-Ray McCloud in double coverage would take the air out of Mercedes-Benz Stadium two plays in. Atlanta got the ball back with 28 seconds left to play, but Cousins was sacked on the game's final snap.
"Needed to play better," Cousins said. "That's the bottom line. I thought our defense played very well; I thought our special teams played very well. We didn't complement that enough on offense."
The three turnovers by the Falcons resulted in three of the Steelers' six total field goals that were enough to win the game. Cousins, who had just 19 passing yards in the second half, seemed slow in the pocket and sometimes indecisive, especially under pressure. It was a rusty performance some might expect from a QB playing his first game in 10 months coming off a torn Achilles last year.
"We know he has to play better," head coach Raheem Morris said. "There's no doubt about that, and we look forward to him doing that. He's played in the league for a long time. I look forward to him bouncing back from a rough outing. I'm not overly concerned with that."
Atlanta goes on the road to face the Philadelphia Eagles (1-0) next week on Monday Night Football.
