New York Giants predicted to trade for four-time Pro Bowl quarterback

The New York Giants will enter the offseason with their sights set on finding a new quarterback. How they go about that, however, is yet to be determined.

Co-owner John Mara and general manager Joe Schoen have left the door open to all possibilities, including the potential trade for a veteran.

“We’ve done a lot of work on the college guys. John mentioned earlier that we’ll look at free agency. We can also look throughout the draft, potential trade opportunities,” Schoen said at his year-end press conference. “We’ll look at any avenue we can to upgrade the position.”

With two quarterback-needy teams picking ahead of them in the NFL draft — the Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns — the Giants might be blocked out from landing either Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders, who are widely viewed as the top two quarterbacks in the current class.

Ultimately, the Giants could hedge their bets and add a veteran before the calendar flips to April.

That’s precisely what Maurice Moton of Bleacher Report believes they’ll do, predicting a trade for quarterback Kirk Cousins.

The Giants don’t have a quarterback under contract for 2025, so they will likely add a veteran with significant starting experience. Because of Cousins’ age and subpar 2024 season, Big Blue may be able to acquire him in exchange for a fourth-round pick.

Remember, the Falcons traded Matt Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts for a third-round pick in 2022. At the time, he was the same as Cousins is right now.

Nonetheless, Ryan posted more efficient passing numbers in his last season as a starter with Atlanta than Cousins did in 2024. So, the Falcons may get a little less for Cousins than they got for Ryan.

Yet Cousins may be the Giants’ best option and could be available at a modest compensation rate.

In Moton’s scenario, the Giants ship a 2025 fourth-round pick and cornerback Cor’Dale Flott off to the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for Cousins and his four-year, $180 million deal that has three years remaining.

There is a potential out in Cousin’s contract after the 2025 season, but the dead cap hit ($25 million) would still cause some damage.

Cousins completed 66.9 percent of his passes for 3,508 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 16 interceptions this past season before being benched in favor of rookie Michael Penix Jr., whom the Giants passed over in the 2024 NFL draft.

Given that Penix is expected to lead the team next season, it would make sense for the Falcons to trade Cousins. And given their desperate need for a quarterback, it would also make sense for the Giants to acquire him.

Should the Giants opt for the trade route, Cousins could very well end up being their desired target.