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We are getting closer.
You constantly hear rumors about Kirk Cousins, different interesting nuggets spread out to NFL Insiders. Why so much info being scattered about – because Cousins agency is chatty.
“Two sources close to the situation told Ian Rapoport that at least two NFL teams are prepared to offer Cousins three-year, fully guaranteed contracts if that’s what it takes to sign him,” wrote NFL.com. “In addition, at least one other team is willing to potentially pay a nearly fully guaranteed deal.”
This agency is very, very media friendly – very helpful to reporters.
One of the associates at that agency is Rick Smith. While he’s not handling the Cousins account, he retweeted this today –
“Also notable about Kirk Cousins’ potential fully-guaranteed deal: this #NFLPA administration has been very combative toward agents. But a fully-guaranteed QB deal on this level would be the union’s biggest contract win (by far) since free agency began. Thanks to…an #NFL agent.”
That tweet was from Yahoo’s Charles Robinson, and was re-tweeted by Smith.
Cousins had a social media post today where he thanked the Redskins, and at the end of the post, the Redskins, the New York Jets and the Minnesota Vikings were tagged. Interesting. But an updated version of his blog post did not include those teams. The agency probably told Kirk it was a bad idea to single teams out on social media.
I do a weekly show on SiriusXM NFL Radio on Saturday’s and legendary NFL personnel man Gil Brandt does a spot on the show each week. He is very, very plugged into to what’s going on around the league.
I’ve asked him on several shows over the last few month where he thinks Cousins will land.
I did ask him again last Saturday, and he said “Minnesota.”
I feel Minnesota is clearly the favorite, and I could be wrong, but I sense that Cousins and his agent are using the Jets as a bargaining chip to up the ante in Minnesota.
Keep something else in mind here – McCartney also represents Josh McCown. In fact, if you go to the website for McCartney’s agency, McCown is on the front page.
Everybody loves McCown, who is a terrific person, and he’s very close with McCartney. They are both very devout. McCartney’s father, Bill, the former Colorado coach, started “Promise Keepers,” an Evangelical Christian organization for men.
While agents will tell you they don’t let one client’s contract impact another, agents are human, and do have emotions.
McCartney obviously knows that the Jets offer McCown his best chance to start in 2018, and his best chance at getting a nice contract.
Don’t you think in his heart of hearts, though he would never say this publicly, McCartney, would love to have Cousins land in Minnesota at $30 million-a-year, and McCown go back to the Jets, for let’s say, one-year, $9 million?
The Jets and Minnesota are clearly the favorites for Cousins. Because when you get to that $30-31 million-a-year range, it’s almost impossible for Arizona and Denver, the two other suitors, to compete, from a salary-cap space standpoint.
Stay tuned.
March 12, 2018.
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