Cousins Trade Rumors

[J. Kapp 11]

Why would you limit the reasons to two?

Here's another. He doesn't report. He takes the LeVeon Bell route. Bell got his trade. Why? Because Pittsburgh knew he wasn't going to play for them, and they wanted to get something in return. With Watson, they know they can get at least 3 first-round picks. If he's not going to report, why not get the picks? I mean, your team just went 4-12. It can't get much worse. Perfect time to rebuild.

That's one reason. I can think of others. Point being, there are more than two.

So reason #3 is he is a malcontent who won't live up to the multi-million dollar contract he signed because his team is not good this year. Because at 25 he knows best how to run an NFL franchise. So a malcontent who has won one playoff game and will demand a record breaking salary and wreck, whoever makes that mistake, their next 3 drafts. Do it Mr. Spielman. I Triple Dog Dare you. I know, that was a slight breach of etiquette.

Not trying to dog you, man. Really not. It's just there is a lot more at play here than meets the eye.

As Montana said, the word is that organization has been in turmoil for quite some time. A lot of it stemmed from the way Bill O'Brien ran things. Here's an excerpt I'm sure you've heard. This is regarding DeAndre Hopkins (Watson's best friend and former teammate at Clemson as well as the Texans) after he was traded to the Cardinals.

According to Hopkins, Texans coach Bill O’Brien was unhappy that Hopkins had “too much influence” in the locker room, and called a meeting with his wide receiver. In that meeting, O’Brien compared Hopkins to Aaron Hernandez, and criticized Hopkins for having the mothers of his children around.

I mean, if your coach compared your best friend to a guy who was convicted of murder and committed suicide in prison, what would you think of that? Then add in the fact that the front office assured Watson he would have a voice — not decision-making power, but a voice — in the type of coach they'd hire next, and then the front office hired someone and never had a single conversation? I'd be pissed, too. After O'Brien, Watson was naturally concerned about who they'd bring in. So management just tells him what he wants to hear to get him off their backs? Talk about patronizing.

Things appear to have been a mess for quite some time. All I'm saying is that there are many other reasons Watson might want out other than being a malcontent.

[VikingLord]

So reason #3 is he is a malcontent who won't live up to the multi-million dollar contract he signed because his team is not good this year. Because at 25 he knows best how to run an NFL franchise. So a malcontent who has won one playoff game and will demand a record breaking salary and wreck, whoever makes that mistake, their next 3 drafts. Do it Mr. Spielman. I Triple Dog Dare you. I know, that was a slight breach of etiquette.

There is just no way Watson would improve the QB situation on the Vikings enough to justify that, even if he did improve it. The best argument I've seen for making a deal for Watson revolves around his age and his production at his age. He is much younger than Cousins and likely has a long career ahead of him, and so he's a hedge against the future and likely to start for whatever team he plays on for a long time.

But the cost of that hedge strikes directly at the heart of the future argument, because buying that hedge requires mortgaging the future of the overall team, and once again to a degree it is unlikely Watson's play alone could overcome.

The Walker deal is a cautionary tale. That deal did make one team consistently competitive for a Superbowl. Unfortunately, it wasn't the team that traded for the player. Even today I'm amazed at how quickly the Vikings recovered from that deal and were able to return to competitiveness. Of course, it wasn't competitiveness for a Superbowl until they drafted Moss in the late 90's, but somehow they were at least back in the playoff mix in the first half of the 90's.

[CharVike]

So reason #3 is he is a malcontent who won't live up to the multi-million dollar contract he signed because his team is not good this year. Because at 25 he knows best how to run an NFL franchise. So a malcontent who has won one playoff game and will demand a record breaking salary and wreck, whoever makes that mistake, their next 3 drafts. Do it Mr. Spielman. I Triple Dog Dare you. I know, that was a slight breach of etiquette.

There is just no way Watson would improve the QB situation on the Vikings enough to justify that, even if he did improve it. The best argument I've seen for making a deal for Watson revolves around his age and his production at his age. He is much younger than Cousins and likely has a long career ahead of him, and so he's a hedge against the future and likely to start for whatever team he plays on for a long time.

But the cost of that hedge strikes directly at the heart of the future argument, because buying that hedge requires mortgaging the future of the overall team, and once again to a degree it is unlikely Watson's play alone could overcome.

The Walker deal is a cautionary tale. That deal did make one team consistently competitive for a Superbowl. Unfortunately, it wasn't the team that traded for the player. Even today I'm amazed at how quickly the Vikings recovered from that deal and were able to return to competitiveness. Of course, it wasn't competitiveness for a Superbowl until they drafted Moss in the late 90's, but somehow they were at least back in the playoff mix in the first half of the 90's.

Some feel we should give up a ton for a lateral move and more than likely a step down. He's a whiner that lead his team to a 4-12 record. He didn't pull any players up. He lacks that ability. He didn't rally the troops to make a run regardless of what's going wrong.
He was fine with the team going down the crapper. I don't want that on our team.

[RandyMoss84]

There is just no way Watson would improve the QB situation on the Vikings enough to justify that, even if he did improve it. The best argument I've seen for making a deal for Watson revolves around his age and his production at his age. He is much younger than Cousins and likely has a long career ahead of him, and so he's a hedge against the future and likely to start for whatever team he plays on for a long time.

But the cost of that hedge strikes directly at the heart of the future argument, because buying that hedge requires mortgaging the future of the overall team, and once again to a degree it is unlikely Watson's play alone could overcome.

The Walker deal is a cautionary tale. That deal did make one team consistently competitive for a Superbowl. Unfortunately, it wasn't the team that traded for the player. Even today I'm amazed at how quickly the Vikings recovered from that deal and were able to return to competitiveness. Of course, it wasn't competitiveness for a Superbowl until they drafted Moss in the late 90's, but somehow they were at least back in the playoff mix in the first half of the 90's.

Some feel we should give up a ton for a lateral move and more than likely a step down. He's a whiner that lead his team to a 4-12 record. He didn't pull any players up. He lacks that ability. He didn't rally the troops to make a run regardless of what's going wrong.
He was fine with the team going down the crapper. I don't want that on our team.

All that will be forgotten if Watson leads Vikings to a Superbowl championship and you will say Watson can stay forever

[CharVike]

Some feel we should give up a ton for a lateral move and more than likely a step down. He's a whiner that lead his team to a 4-12 record. He didn't pull any players up. He lacks that ability. He didn't rally the troops to make a run regardless of what's going wrong.
He was fine with the team going down the crapper. I don't want that on our team.

All that will be forgotten if Watson leads Vikings to a Superbowl championship and you will say Watson can stay forever

It don't matter he don't want to play here. That's his style. If he leaves Houston for team ??? he'll complain about team ??? once something doesn't fit his needs. Hopefully he goes to the Fins who have a good team. That should be Super Bowl in the bank. The Fins are basically screwed at this point because Tua or whatever blows which put them in big trouble. So now it's back to the drawing board to draft another. That could go on for 1 or 50 years. That core group of players from 2020 won't play forever. Won't play the same every year they are together. The Fins GM don't know QBs very well so maybe he will jump. They drafted a guy at pick 5 who lacks the size. Great move. They need to do something now or the gigs up and another wasted season lays ahead.

[StumpHunter]

There is just no way Watson would improve the QB situation on the Vikings enough to justify that, even if he did improve it. The best argument I've seen for making a deal for Watson revolves around his age and his production at his age. He is much younger than Cousins and likely has a long career ahead of him, and so he's a hedge against the future and likely to start for whatever team he plays on for a long time.

Every NFL expert, from GM to HC to analyst would disagree with you here. It isn't just about his age, he is a significantly better QB who actually makes his team better. Cousins is a guy who beats up on bad teams, but struggles more than most QBs against better defenses, and Watson is a guy who is just as good against the #1 NE Patriots defense as he is against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Walker deal is a cautionary tale. That deal did make one team consistently competitive for a Superbowl. Unfortunately, it wasn't the team that traded for the player. Even today I'm amazed at how quickly the Vikings recovered from that deal and were able to return to competitiveness. Of course, it wasn't competitiveness for a Superbowl until they drafted Moss in the late 90's, but somehow they were at least back in the playoff mix in the first half of the 90's.

The Walker deal was for a RB. It has nothing to do with this situation, where you would be adding the piece that is the difference between having the ability to consistently compete for a SB and just hoping that you can get to the playoffs every few years.

[Raz]

The Walker deal was for a RB. It has nothing to do with this situation, where you would be adding the piece that is the difference between having the ability to consistently compete for a SB and just hoping that you can get to the playoffs every few years.




I disagree that Vikings team was close to a super bowl so they thought, and the league was a running back league then. Mike Lynn pulled the trigger on the most disastrous trade to that date in the nfl of course at the time all us rubes thought it was awesome.

No way I’m in favor of giving up the farm for a guy who may or may not be better I’d rather redo kicks contract for another year and roll with a drafty when the time comes

[J. Kapp 11]

So I still haven’t heard an answer to my question, so I’ll ask again.

The Carolina Panthers reportedly offered their first-round pick (No. 8 overall), a fifth-round pick, and Teddy Bridgewater to Detroit for Matthew Stafford, a quarterback who is, at best, on par with Kirk Cousins.

If the Panthers offered the same package to the Vikings, would you take it?

Some things to keep in mind.

— On March 19, Cousins’ 2022 salary of $35 million becomes fully guaranteed, meaning the Vikings would be on the hook for $76 million over the next two seasons ($31 million for 2021, plus $35 million salary and &10 million prorated bonus in 2022).

— Kirk’s camp has said that he is not interested in restructuring, which means the Vikings will pay the full ride unless they deal him before March 19.

— If the trade were made, the Vikings would suddenly own the 8th and 14th picks in this year’s draft.

— Teddy’s cap hit to the Vikings would be $17 million in 2021 and $20 million in 2022, just under half of Kirk’s.

So ... pretend Carolina is on the phone making this offer. Would you do it?

[CharVike]

The Walker deal was for a RB. It has nothing to do with this situation, where you would be adding the piece that is the difference between having the ability to consistently compete for a SB and just hoping that you can get to the playoffs every few years.




I disagree that Vikings team was close to a super bowl so they thought, and the league was a running back league then. Mike Lynn pulled the trigger on the most disastrous trade to that date in the nfl of course at the time all us rubes thought it was awesome.

No way I’m in favor of giving up the farm for a guy who may or may not be better I’d rather redo kicks contract for another year and roll with a drafty when the time comes

We should always look to draft a QB. I wanted us to take Drew Lock but we didn't. That was a good move by Speilman because it looks like Lock will be out of football soon. But I understand Speilman taking Bradbury because we needed a center. I hope he considers Mac Jones this year in round one. I like the guy. But I don't see that as the pick. I don't want to give up the farm either unless the haul is Mahomes. Mahomes will never be on the block so that's out. They will also do a Cousins extension at some point. Unless he leads us to a Texans record. Then it will be good bye to the entire house. I don't see that either.

[StumpHunter]

So I still haven’t heard an answer to my question, so I’ll ask again.

The Carolina Panthers reportedly offered their first-round pick (No. 8 overall), a fifth-round pick, and Teddy Bridgewater to Detroit for Matthew Stafford, a quarterback who is, at best, on par with Kirk Cousins.

If the Panthers offered the same package to the Vikings, would you take it?

Some things to keep in mind.

— On March 19, Cousins’ 2022 salary of $35 million becomes fully guaranteed, meaning the Vikings would be on the hook for $76 million over the next two seasons ($31 million for 2021, plus $35 million salary and &10 million prorated bonus in 2022).

— Kirk’s camp has said that he is not interested in restructuring, which means the Vikings will pay the full ride unless they deal him before March 19.

— If the trade were made, the Vikings would suddenly own the 8th and 14th picks in this year’s draft.

— Teddy’s cap hit to the Vikings would be $17 million in 2021 and $20 million in 2022, just under half of Kirk’s.

So ... pretend Carolina is on the phone making this offer. Would you do it?

Anyone who says no has to understand that Cousins has to play poorly enough to get benched to not to get a fully guaranteed extension in 2022 if Rick remains the GM, which means if he is on the roster in 2021, he will be our QB, making as much or more than Mahomes, until 2024.

Rick cannot survive Cousins failing, and to avoid that happening he will keep extending him to prove to the Wilfs he is a successful QB.

This is the last chance to get out from under Kirk's contract and if you get the 8th overall pick, something Carolina might actually do since they are proving themselves to be incompetent with the Stafford offer, you do make that trade in a minute.

[StumpHunter]

The Walker deal was for a RB. It has nothing to do with this situation, where you would be adding the piece that is the difference between having the ability to consistently compete for a SB and just hoping that you can get to the playoffs every few years.




I disagree that Vikings team was close to a super bowl so they thought, and the league was a running back league then. Mike Lynn pulled the trigger on the most disastrous trade to that date in the nfl of course at the time all us rubes thought it was awesome.

No way I’m in favor of giving up the farm for a guy who may or may not be better I’d rather redo kicks contract for another year and roll with a drafty when the time comes

Well don't worry, because you would be giving up the farm for a guy who is a clear upgrade.

PFF just put out an article saying that Watson's 2020 season might be the best in the history of the NFL considering the circumstances he was in. I didn't realize this, but Houston pretty much had 0 screen or PA game, and when you couple that with their lack of run game, it means that everything the Texans did on offense was because of Watson's arm with every defense focusing on just stopping him. No Cook to drop safeties into the box, no passes behind the line of scrimmage that go for 30 yards, just Watson making plays when every defense knows that is the only way the Texans are going to move the football.

Not to say he wasn't great when he did PA or threw screens, I think he was the 3rd highest graded passer on PA when they did throw it, but just like Brady and Mahomes and Brees and Wilson, he doesn't need it, which makes him that much more difficult to stop.

[J. Kapp 11]

So I still haven’t heard an answer to my question, so I’ll ask again.

The Carolina Panthers reportedly offered their first-round pick (No. 8 overall), a fifth-round pick, and Teddy Bridgewater to Detroit for Matthew Stafford, a quarterback who is, at best, on par with Kirk Cousins.

If the Panthers offered the same package to the Vikings, would you take it?

Some things to keep in mind.

— On March 19, Cousins’ 2022 salary of $35 million becomes fully guaranteed, meaning the Vikings would be on the hook for $76 million over the next two seasons ($31 million for 2021, plus $35 million salary and &10 million prorated bonus in 2022).

— Kirk’s camp has said that he is not interested in restructuring, which means the Vikings will pay the full ride unless they deal him before March 19.

— If the trade were made, the Vikings would suddenly own the 8th and 14th picks in this year’s draft.

— Teddy’s cap hit to the Vikings would be $17 million in 2021 and $20 million in 2022, just under half of Kirk’s.

So ... pretend Carolina is on the phone making this offer. Would you do it?

Anyone who says no has to understand that Cousins has to play poorly enough to get benched to not to get a fully guaranteed extension in 2022 if Rick remains the GM, which means if he is on the roster in 2021, he will be our QB, making as much or more than Mahomes, until 2024.

Rick cannot survive Cousins failing, and to avoid that happening he will keep extending him to prove to the Wilfs he is a successful QB.

This is the last chance to get out from under Kirk's contract and if you get the 8th overall pick, something Carolina might actually do since they are proving themselves to be incompetent with the Stafford offer, you do make that trade in a minute.

Couldn't agree more.

A couple of things.

If Kirk Cousins gets to his 2022 contract with the Vikings, he'll be paid $45 million. Patrick Mahomes will not be paid that much until 2027. Think about that for a minute. Kirk Cousins could conceivably make more money that Patrick Mahomes for the next six years.

You are correct that if Cousins in on our roster in 2021, he will make more than Mahomes. But remember ... it's not whether he's on our roster in 2021 during the season. It's whether he's on our roster just over a month from now. If the Vikings are going to make a move with Cousins, they HAVE to do it in the next 30-odd days.

The one way Rick gets out from under being fired due to Cousins-fail is to make a deal that nets the Vikings a high draft pick. If you get Teddy Bridgewater in return, a perfect bridge quarterback, you come out looking like a hero to a lot of Vikings fans. The key is whether he can sell the Wilfs on it (because it's fairly obvious that selling Teddy Bridgewater to Mike Zimmer would be about as hard as selling ice cream to a 6-year-old). And of course whether Carolina would be stupid enough to pay Kirk Cousins $35 million next year.

The thing that gets me are the reports that Cousins will not restructure, yet claims he wants to be a Viking for the rest of his career. At first, that made no sense to me. They seem like competing points of view. But as I think about it harder, it makes perfect sense. The Vikings are the one team that has shown a consistent willingness to overpay Cousins. OF COURSE he wants to stay. He's got Spielman on the hook.

As for Cousins' unwillingness to restructure, I'm guessing that's just a smoke screen designed to get even more out of the Vikings in the long term. He's using his leverage — that he, Kirk Cousins, is Spielman's ride-or-die. Cousins has backed Rick into a corner. If Spielman can't trade Cousins' albatross of a contract by March 19, then Cousins will come back on March 20, when his 2022 contract is fully guaranteed, and say to Spielman, "I already took less money last year. If you want me to take less money again this year, it's gonna cost you big-time down the road."

Gotta give Kirk Cousins credit for one thing. He may be a dad and a really nice guy and drive a minivan. But he's no fool.

[chicagopurple]

cousins making to 2022 season with the Vikes will mean a decade of futility. we will have no cap money to build a winning team. He is unable to perform unless he has a teflon bubble around him and our current OL is more like a sieve that will only get worse unless we majorly invest in the OL which takes some cash which we wont have. The ONLY person who will profit from keeping Kirk in 2022 is KIRK. He will chuckle all the way to the bank while we flounder in mediocrity.....again....

[StumpHunter]

Anyone who says no has to understand that Cousins has to play poorly enough to get benched to not to get a fully guaranteed extension in 2022 if Rick remains the GM, which means if he is on the roster in 2021, he will be our QB, making as much or more than Mahomes, until 2024.

Rick cannot survive Cousins failing, and to avoid that happening he will keep extending him to prove to the Wilfs he is a successful QB.

This is the last chance to get out from under Kirk's contract and if you get the 8th overall pick, something Carolina might actually do since they are proving themselves to be incompetent with the Stafford offer, you do make that trade in a minute.

Couldn't agree more.

A couple of things.

If Kirk Cousins gets to his 2022 contract with the Vikings, he'll be paid $45 million. Patrick Mahomes will not be paid that much until 2027. Think about that for a minute. Kirk Cousins could conceivably make more money that Patrick Mahomes for the next six years.

You are correct that if Cousins in on our roster in 2021, he will make more than Mahomes. But remember ... it's not whether he's on our roster in 2021 during the season. It's whether he's on our roster just over a month from now. If the Vikings are going to make a move with Cousins, they HAVE to do it in the next 30-odd days.

The one way Rick gets out from under being fired due to Cousins-fail is to make a deal that nets the Vikings a high draft pick. If you get Teddy Bridgewater in return, a perfect bridge quarterback, you come out looking like a hero to a lot of Vikings fans. The key is whether he can sell the Wilfs on it (because it's fairly obvious that selling Teddy Bridgewater to Mike Zimmer would be about as hard as selling ice cream to a 6-year-old). And of course whether Carolina would be stupid enough to pay Kirk Cousins $35 million next year.

The thing that gets me are the reports that Cousins will not restructure, yet claims he wants to be a Viking for the rest of his career. At first, that made no sense to me. They seem like competing points of view. But as I think about it harder, it makes perfect sense. The Vikings are the one team that has shown a consistent willingness to overpay Cousins. OF COURSE he wants to stay. He's got Spielman on the hook.

As for Cousins' unwillingness to restructure, I'm guessing that's just a smoke screen designed to get even more out of the Vikings in the long term. He's using his leverage — that he, Kirk Cousins, is Spielman's ride-or-die. Cousins has backed Rick into a corner. If Spielman can't trade Cousins' albatross of a contract by March 19, then Cousins will come back on March 20, when his 2022 contract is fully guaranteed, and say to Spielman, "I already took less money last year. If you want me to take less money again this year, it's gonna cost you big-time down the road."

Gotta give Kirk Cousins credit for one thing. He may be a dad and a really nice guy and drive a minivan. But he's no fool.

Yep, outside of the fully guaranteed thing, Kirk isn't doing anything most other QBs do. He is milking his GM for every penny he can, just like Wilson, Rodgers and Mahomes did. Even Brees trying to win a SB in his final year in the NFL wouldn't give his team a break.

It is up to the GM to finally say enough is enough, and ours can't because it would cost him his job.

One thing about your post that I want to clarify, Cousins didn't give up a penny in 2020 to save the Vikings cap space. He still got that 10 million that didn't count against the cap last year, it just wasn't put on the Viking's books until this year. As far as he is concerned, that part of the extension was irrelevant.

[J. Kapp 11]

Couldn't agree more.

A couple of things.

If Kirk Cousins gets to his 2022 contract with the Vikings, he'll be paid $45 million. Patrick Mahomes will not be paid that much until 2027. Think about that for a minute. Kirk Cousins could conceivably make more money that Patrick Mahomes for the next six years.

You are correct that if Cousins in on our roster in 2021, he will make more than Mahomes. But remember ... it's not whether he's on our roster in 2021 during the season. It's whether he's on our roster just over a month from now. If the Vikings are going to make a move with Cousins, they HAVE to do it in the next 30-odd days.

The one way Rick gets out from under being fired due to Cousins-fail is to make a deal that nets the Vikings a high draft pick. If you get Teddy Bridgewater in return, a perfect bridge quarterback, you come out looking like a hero to a lot of Vikings fans. The key is whether he can sell the Wilfs on it (because it's fairly obvious that selling Teddy Bridgewater to Mike Zimmer would be about as hard as selling ice cream to a 6-year-old). And of course whether Carolina would be stupid enough to pay Kirk Cousins $35 million next year.

The thing that gets me are the reports that Cousins will not restructure, yet claims he wants to be a Viking for the rest of his career. At first, that made no sense to me. They seem like competing points of view. But as I think about it harder, it makes perfect sense. The Vikings are the one team that has shown a consistent willingness to overpay Cousins. OF COURSE he wants to stay. He's got Spielman on the hook.

As for Cousins' unwillingness to restructure, I'm guessing that's just a smoke screen designed to get even more out of the Vikings in the long term. He's using his leverage — that he, Kirk Cousins, is Spielman's ride-or-die. Cousins has backed Rick into a corner. If Spielman can't trade Cousins' albatross of a contract by March 19, then Cousins will come back on March 20, when his 2022 contract is fully guaranteed, and say to Spielman, "I already took less money last year. If you want me to take less money again this year, it's gonna cost you big-time down the road."

Gotta give Kirk Cousins credit for one thing. He may be a dad and a really nice guy and drive a minivan. But he's no fool.

Yep, outside of the fully guaranteed thing, Kirk isn't doing anything most other QBs do. He is milking his GM for every penny he can, just like Wilson, Rodgers and Mahomes did. Even Brees trying to win a SB in his final year in the NFL wouldn't give his team a break.

It is up to the GM to finally say enough is enough, and ours can't because it would cost him his job.

One thing about your post that I want to clarify, Cousins didn't give up a penny in 2020 to save the Vikings cap space. He still got that 10 million that didn't count against the cap last year, it just wasn't put on the Viking's books until this year. As far as he is concerned, that part of the extension was irrelevant.

Good point.

Let me restate.

On March 20, Cousins will probably say, "I already restructured once to help you with cap. Want me to do it again? Pay up."