Kirk Cousins and the Falcons are expected to part ways before his $10 million roster bonus is due March 17, according to ESPN.

There is an expectation across the league that the Falcons will not be able to trade Cousins and will have to release him before March 17, when his $10 million roster bonus for the 2026 season comes due. There is no need for the Falcons to absorb any more costs for a quarterback whom they have paid $90 million for 14 games.

Therefore, for the second straight offseason, Cousins is expected to become a free agent.

The Commanders’ path to returning to nation’s capital is clear after an on-again, off-again saga in Congress ended with a late reprieve. The U.S. Senate passed a resolution early Saturday to transfer the land including old RFK Stadium from the federal government to the District of Columbia.

College basketball: Kon Knueppel scored 18 points, Cooper Flagg celebrated his 18th birthday by chipping in 13 and No. 5 Duke romped to an 82-56 victory over Georgia Tech. ... Riley Kugel scored 19 points and KeShawn Murphy added 13 points and nine rebounds to lead Mississippi State past No. 21 Memphis 79-66 on Saturday. ... Kam Jones scored 20 points and David Joplin added 19 as No. 9 Marquette overcame a late rally by Xavier 72-70 on Saturday.

MLB: First baseman Paul Goldschmidt and Yankees are in agreement on a one-year, $12.5 million contract.

NBA: Joe Mazzulla’s Christmas greetings were costly. The NBA fined the Celtics coach $35,000 on Saturday “for aggressively pursuing and directing inappropriate language toward a game official” at the end of his team’s loss to the Bulls on Thursday night. ... Suns guard Devin Booker will miss at least the next two games with left groin soreness in the latest blow to the team’s starting lineup.