NEW ORLEANS — The Atlanta Falcons didn't need Kirk Cousins to be flashy. They didn't need him to be a hero. But in a week where the franchise saw some of its lowest days of recent memory, they needed him to be clean, even-keeled and efficient. He was all of those things while helping the Falcons snap their five-game losing streak in New Orleans Sunday evening.

The Falcons hadn't won a game since Week 6. They had taken two teams to overtime during that span, losing both. The offense struggled to string drives together, their third-down conversion rate telling the story. And to make matters worse, they lost Michael Penix Jr. to his third season-ending knee injury in five years.

As Penix prepped for reconstructive surgery — reportedly happening soon in Los Angeles — the Falcons turned back to Cousins in perhaps it's darkest quarterback hour since sending Matt Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts in March 2021. The future looked bleak because the future relies on Penix's recovery and development.

In the interim would be Cousins. But which version of Cousins? The Falcons have seen the highest of highs and the lowest of lows with the veteran quarterback in the short time he's been in Atlanta.

What Atlanta needed from him in New Orleans was simple consistency.

They needed Cousins to take care of the ball — something he did despite the one interception on his stat sheet (he made the right call on that throw, he hit Kyle Pitts in the hands). They needed Cousins to move the chains — something he did by connecting on 16 of his 23 passes. They needed a little flash, too — something he showed when he threw his longest pass as a Falcon (air yards) to Darnell Mooney for what ended up being a game-sealing touchdown in the fourth quarter.

And most of all, they needed a leader who showed some heart — something Cousins of all people showed when he lowered his shoulder on a scramble for a first down.

Raheem Morris explained after the game the Falcons "accommodated" Cousins by utilizing more play-action and under-center looks. So, yes, the Cousins wrinkles were obvious. But it was what Cousins did — or rather, didn't do — within those wrinkles that mattered. Cousins didn't get in the way of the game. He wasn't a wrinkle that caused ripple effects throughout four quarters.

And when you have a defense playing as well as Atlanta's did in that game, that's all the Falcons needed him to do.

In the postgame locker room, Morris gave out the first game balls he's been able to since Week 6. He — of course — welcomed back inside linebacker Divine Deablo to the defense after his stint on injured reserve. He told kick Zane Gonzalez the team "had been waiting on this all year," referring to his two made field goals beyond 50 yards in the win. Before he did any of that, though, he said two words and tossed a game ball towards Cousins.

"Our quarterback," Morris said as the ball flew through the muggy locker room air into Cousins' waiting arms.

And that's what Cousins is for the time being. Regardless of how Atlanta has gotten here, it's Cousins who's leading the organization through the end of 2025. What that means for the future is anyone's guess, but it was the right start. Clean, efficient and didn't get in the way.