Cousins Saga 4.0. Is he done in DC?

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by MTK

It’s just funny that for a team that’s been QB starved for decades, some fans are so ready to move on from one that has played at a pretty high level.

It’s like someone who’s lived in a dumpy one bedroom apartment their whole life and they have the chance to upgrade to a nice 3 bedroom townhouse and they say eh, not the mansion I was looking for, I’ll pass.

I think this just ignores circumstances entirely though. The question isn't how has Cousins performed. The question is how could other QBs have performed behind a line that features Trent and Moses, Scherff, and an improving center position.

In games where Reed and Thompson were both on the field, or where we had one and not the other, Cousins's numbers were drastically better. Chucking a screen to Chris Thompson and watching Brandon Scherff go 20 yards downfield to block the free safety, springing Thompson for a TD looks pretty good on the stat sheet for Cousins.

But a lot of QBs could do that. Our offense is a pretty good situation to play in.

The question is what does Cousins CREATE for us. Like, if you're in the playoffs and you need a QB to make a play late in the game to keep the chains moving, Cousins can do it sometimes. But Aaron Rodgers, Carson Wentz, Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Russell Wilson, Drew Brees, and several others can do it much much more often.

How would Matthew Stafford or Alex Smith look playing in this offense? I think pretty damn good too.

Our offense with Cousins has been good, that's why I say you can win with him. But he doesn't create the kinds of jaw dropping plays that others do. I would have loved to lock him up in 2015 when we had the chance. The pay would have been reasonable. But I'm not so sure there's a realistic path to a Super Bowl if we're paying a solid NFL starter top-player-in-the-league money.

I think your thinking has to go to the next level. It's an attitude too dismissive of circumstance.

[MTK]

Can’t wait to see Colt McCoy light things up.

[skinsfaninok]

Originally Posted by MTK

Can’t wait to see Colt McCoy light things up.

Unfortunately it seems as if he could be the starter lmao what a joke.

[MTK]

Back to our comfy one room efficiency apartment lol

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by MTK

Can’t wait to see Colt McCoy light things up.

Yeah, why think when you can deflect with sarcasm.

As always, Keim brings the reasoned and balanced thinking. It's not a slam dunk to sign the guy to a contract that makes him the highest paid player. It's a 'dilemma'. Perfect name for it.

Jay Gruden's comments reveals Redskins' dilemma with Kirk Cousins - Washington Redskins Blog- ESPN

Of the 12 highest-paid quarterbacks this year in terms of average per year salary, only two made the postseason -- the Pittsburgh Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger and the New Orleans Saints' Drew Brees. And the Saints were coming off four straight 7-9 finishes with Brees. Two quarterbacks were injured -- the Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers and the Indianapolis Colts' Andrew Luck. In 2016, seven of the 12 highest-paid missed the playoffs. You'd best believe the Redskins are aware of this stat. Those teams didn't miss just because they paid the quarterback -- it's the most important position in the game; you need a quality one -- but it also speaks to needing cap room to build a consistent winner. And a front office can't use this reason to explain any failures. You can still draft well; you can still sign productive free agents. The Redskins did not miss the playoffs this year because Cousins was making $24.4 million. Still, it shows you need more and, in some cases, a lot more.

There were injuries, of course, but the Redskins could look at the roster and tell themselves, "This is what it'll look like in the future if we can't afford a lot of other pieces." Therefore, you need the quarterback to play at a certain level. Cousins, down the stretch, did not. Having injured players such as tackle Trent Williams, tight end Jordan Reed and running back Chris Thompson would have helped. But they needed Cousins to play well, or consistent, in the other games. Some of the throws were missed or forced; that wasn't an injury issue.

[MTK]

I’m being as dismissive as those that have had their minds made up since day 1 that they don’t want Kirk here if it means he’s going to get paid top dollar. A swipe at the haters if you will.

Yeah I fully realize it’s not an easy decision. But it also boils down to you either have a QB or you’re looking for one. There’s only 10-12 teams that can say they’re set at QB. The rest are chasing one every season and I’m afraid we’ll be in that group again if Kirk gets away.

[Chico23231]

The ultimate failure with Cousins is first if he walk and we receive ZERO compensation. Then we go into next season with Colt McCoy as the starter.

[skinsfan69]

I don't think the dropoff from Kirk to Colt is drastic. From what we'd lose in arm talent we'd pick up with more playmaking ability. I remember a few years ago most of the fanbase was saying the EXACT same thing about Cousins. Most people were calling Cousins Rex Grossman...lol. My thing w/ Colt is he hasn't played in years and is he durable?

[skinsfan69]

Originally Posted by Chico23231

The ultimate failure with Cousins is first if he walk and we receive ZERO compensation. Then we go into next season with Colt McCoy as the starter.

I would assume the Redskins could put the tag on him and perhaps trade him to a team that has a lot of cap room. Perhaps a team like the Browns.

[MTK]

Originally Posted by skinsfan69

I don't think the dropoff from Kirk to Colt is drastic. From what we'd lose in arm talent we'd pick up with more playmaking ability. I remember a few years ago most of the fanbase was saying the EXACT same thing about Cousins. Most people were calling Cousins Rex Grossman...lol. My thing w/ Colt is he hasn't played in years and is he durable?

Definitely not durable, he tends to scramble around and take shots, so a solid backup would be a must.

[Chico23231]

Originally Posted by skinsfan69

I don't think the dropoff from Kirk to Colt is drastic. From what we'd lose in arm talent we'd pick up with more playmaking ability. I remember a few years ago most of the fanbase was saying the EXACT same thing about Cousins. Most people were calling Cousins Rex Grossman...lol. My thing w/ Colt is he hasn't played in years and is he durable?

I like to amend my previous statement also to add..."and lastly we don't draft a QB this year"


I think the drop from Cousins to Colt is significant. We woulda easily been a double digit loss team this year with Colt.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by Chico23231

The ultimate failure with Cousins is first if he walk and we receive ZERO compensation. Then we go into next season with Colt McCoy as the starter.

That's true. But we've already taken three steps down that path. The real failure occurred when we failed to lock him up in 2015 at a reasonable price.

Now the question is do you pay top dollar or do you let him go (for a 3rd round compensatory selection, or maybe a tad more if you can wrangle some kind of trade).

Remember, just because you made one mistake doesn't mean you need to make a second. Giving him a long term deal at say $27M per year could be throwing good money after bad.

If Cousins leaves and we get no compensation aside from the 3rd round compensatory pick, the fan base is going to scream for Bruce Allen's job. The thing is, they should already be doing so because of the mistake made in 2015. He already made the bed for us.

[Chico23231]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

That's true. But we've already taken three steps down that path. The real failure occurred when we failed to lock him up in 2015 at a reasonable price.

Now the question is do you pay top dollar or do you let him go (for a 3rd round compensatory selection, or maybe a tad more if you can wrangle some kind of trade).

Remember, just because you made one mistake doesn't mean you need to make a second. Giving him a long term deal at say $27M per year could be throwing good money after bad.

If Cousins leaves and we get no compensation aside from the 3rd round compensatory pick, the fan base is going to scream for Bruce Allen's job. The thing is, they should already be doing so because of the mistake made in 2015. He already made the bed for us.

The market dictates 27 mil per imo. I would lock him up and continue to build around him. I wouldn't have a problem and think that is best case.

3rd round would be disappointing but better than nothing. Preference would be a 2nd per Trade which is his value...like you said.

But nothing is inexcusable.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by Chico23231

The market dictates 27 mil per imo. I would lock him up and continue to build around him. I wouldn't have a problem and think that is best case.

3rd round would be disappointing but better than nothing. Preference would be a 2nd per Trade which is his value...like you said.

But nothing is inexcusable.

I can see your side.

For me it comes down to this question: how could we win a super bowl sooner?

a) sign Cousins to a record setting QB contract and try to build around him with what cap space we have.

b) let him move on, get what we can whether via trade or compensatory, and start the search for the next great QB while we build up the team.

I think we could win a Super Bowl sooner with A than with B. But I'm not totally sure. The only thing I'm sure of is we won't win a Super Bowl "soon" with either A or B. It sucks. I'm jealous of the Eagles with Wentz. They're going to have multiple shots at it over the next 10-15 years. Until we find a QB like that, it will just be so much harder for us. Especially since one of the up and coming greats is in our division.

[metalskins]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Yeah, why think when you can deflect with sarcasm.

As always, Keim brings the reasoned and balanced thinking. It's not a slam dunk to sign the guy to a contract that makes him the highest paid player. It's a 'dilemma'. Perfect name for it.

Jay Gruden's comments reveals Redskins' dilemma with Kirk Cousins - Washington Redskins Blog- ESPN

As always, Keim is the voice of reason to bridge the gap between both sides of the argument. I, for one, would love to bring Cousins back, because I think he has clearly been the best quarterback we have had in a long time. And when I mean the best quarterback, I mean one that hasn't had just one really good year, he's continued to improve in the three seasons he's started. At the same time, he also has issues of starting the seasons slowly, and then having some really bad games like he did against the Chargers, Cowboys, and Giants.

So, it very much is a dilemma. It most certainly isn't a slam dunk to sign Kirk Cousins. Look at all the needs this team has going into next year. We need to resign Zach Brown, Mason Foster, we need to find a #1 receiver, we need a running back (I just don't have faith in Fat Rob), I'm not sure we can find all of those in the draft, but if we lose Cousins, well, that's another need - quarterback.

It isn't a cut and dry situation. It would've been if Cousins had gotten us to playoff appearances and wins in these last three seasons, but he hasn't. And in the end, what matters the most is your win/loss ratio and playoff appearances.