Washington Redskins Place Exclusive Franchise Tag On Kirk Cousins

It was a foregone conclusion that the Washington Redskins would use their franchise tag on Kirk Cousins. However, their use of the exclusive franchise tender was somewhat surprising.

There was never any doubt that the Washington Redskins would tag Kirk Cousins. The team’s starting quarterback in each of the past two seasons was set to be an unrestricted free agent, and the Redskins could not afford to let him walk for nothing in the offseason. Cousins is in team control for the 2017 season, but there are still quite a few options for what the team could do. However, by using the exclusive franchise tag, the Redskins have eliminated some of those options while also displaying that they may want to keep Cousins moving forward.

In terms of franchise tags in the NFL, there are two different types. The exclusive tag and the non-exclusive tag. The exclusive tag is self explanatory. That designation binds the player in question to team control for the one-year period the tag occupies. No other team can attempt to negotiate with the player.

Meanwhile, the non-exclusive tag allows the tagged player to negotiate potential contracts with other teams. This allows them to seek a potential long term deal with another squad. However, if a player does sign with another team, then the team that tagged them is entitled to compensation for the player. The level of compensation is always two first round picks. For that reason, not many players end up signing elsewhere when tagged.

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Still, it seems surprising that the Redskins would use their exclusive franchise tag on Cousins. There have been rumblings that Cousins wants to leave the team and may not sign a long term deal with anyone besides the San Francisco 49ers. If that is true, then the Redskins may be forced to deal Cousins away to ensure that they get something in return for their talented signal caller. They also will not be able to tag Cousins in the 2018 offseason, as his cap number would be an astonishing $31 million figure. That would cripple the team financially and cause a lot of problems for them in free agency.

With that said, it makes me wonder why the Redskins did not use the non-exclusive tag on Cousins. That could have allowed them to create a potential bidding war amongst teams like the San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, and maybe the New York Jets to land the services of Cousins. If that happened, they would have been guaranteed at least two first round picks in exchange.

Now, it looks like the only realistic option for the Redskins is to trade Cousins for a first round pick. He does not carry enough value to charge two first round picks, even with a bidding war. Also, since Cousins is only going to ink a long term deal with the 49ers, the other potential suitors would have far less interest in acquiring Cousins on a one-year deal for that level of compensation. Thus, the only real option for the Redskins as a trade partner is the 49ers.

Despite the potential trade scenarios, I think that this points to one things for the Redskins. They want Cousins to be their quarterback. Though they have not shown it in negotiations, they think that Cousins has what it takes to make it as a franchise quarterback. If they did not think that, then they would have used the non-exclusive tag due to the aforementioned reasons.

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Moving forward, it will be interesting to see if the Redskins are able to reconcile with Cousins. If they cannot, then I would expect Cousins to be the next starting quarterbacks for the 49ers. In the coming months, this will continue to be the biggest storyline for the Redskins.

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