Kirk Cousins Loves San Francisco 49ers If Washington Redskins Balk
By Dan Salem
Kirk Cousins loves the San Francisco 49ers, apparently. If the Washington Redskins balk at a long-term deal or lowball him, he wants a trade to San Francisco.
According to “a source close to the quarterback,” the one and only Kirk Cousins has just one destination he would like to be traded to if he can’t reconcile a long-term contract with the Washington Redskins, per ESPN’s John Keim. That one spot is San Francisco.
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With the franchise tag firmly applied, Cousins will be a rich man next football season. But if the Redskins balk at a deal and low-ball the quarterback, apparently the 49ers are his next and future love. Apparently.
Two brothers from New York, Dan Salem and Todd Salem, discuss Kirk Cousins in today’s NFL Sports Debate.
Todd Salem:
The news of this ultimatum is downright intriguing. Now, “a source close to the quarterback” could mean his mom or an old roommate. It could mean someone who works for Washington. It could also be someone geographically close to Cousins, like some 49ers fan who lives across the street. The reason I’m dubious of this source is because I can think of about 29 other franchises I would rather play for than the San Francisco 49ers.
The lone reason cited for Cousins’ desire to play in San Francisco is the existence of his former coordinator, Kyle Shanahan, as head coach. This makes sense, but feels incredibly shortsighted by Cousins. The dude doesn’t care about anything outside of his team’s head coach? And it’s not even because he knows the head coach is good at his job; it’s because he knows the head coach was good at a different job!
Am I misreading this situation? San Francisco is a horrible place to want to play right now, right? Between the crazy ownership and managing group, the crumbling infrastructure of the organization, the ragged roster, and the losing nature, where is a worse place to play? Even Cleveland has a plan.
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Perhaps this is Cousins’ way of negotiating with Washington. If the Redskins have very few to no options of where to trade Cousins, they are left with only the ability to deal with him one-on-one. Since the team applied an exclusive franchise tag on Cousins, it gives each side a couple of months to come to an agreement, or force the Skins to make a handicapped deal with the 49ers. If any other franchise knows they could acquire Cousins for 2017 but that he wouldn’t want to sign there, how much would they realistically offer? This has to be a ploy by the Cousins camp. It seems risky, though. He could end up getting exactly what he is pretending to want: being the starting quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers.
Dan Salem:
If I’m putting money on anything, it’s Cousins signing long-term with the Washington Redskins. This ultimatum feels lackluster at best, because the Redskins are a winning team. Any other franchise willing to trade for Cousins is likely far from it. You pose a valid question, however. Why would Cousins want to go to San Francisco? Why would Washington want to trade him? Why would the 49ers leverage the farm to get him? Nothing makes sense anymore!
A desire to play for an old coach is admirable, but foolish. A desire to jump-start another organization is brave, but naive. Cousins got the franchise tag he earned, making him currently the fourth highest paid player in the NFL next season if he does not work out a long-term deal with Washington. But I give little validity to his actual desire to play for San Francisco.
Perhaps this was his way of showing the Redskins that he’s open to a trade, or his way of making it clear that he won’t accept mid-tier money. Now that he’s been tagged, he has no reason to sign unless the deal is ridiculously sweet. Cousins is now guaranteed an enormous one year payday as a worst case scenario!
Of course the 49ers want Kirk Cousins. That’s one less hole to fill on a team full of them. But the Redskins would be foolish to trade him. I don’t care how many first round picks you get, Cousins is a top quarterback in the NFL and that is very hard to come by. He’s not flashy, but he gets the job done better than most. Considering the other realistic options available, I choose Cousins. I want him over Jay Cutler and Tony Romo. Only Jimmy Garoppolo warrants serious consideration, but he’s no cheaper and much less available. As ultimatums go, this seems like a no-brainer for the Washington Redskins.
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I’ve been surprised before, so if Cousins “gets what he wants” and is traded to San Francisco, then I will eat my words. The Redskins will somehow land Romo in that scenario and Cousins will laugh his way to the bank. The only loser will be the 49ers, because they’ll still stink next season. One player, even a quarterback, won’t fix all of your problems over night.