Washington Redskins remain Kirk Cousins’ first choice
Kirk Cousins opened up about his contract situation on Tuesday morning. He is definitely taking the high road after what the organization did on Monday.
The Washington Redskins and Kirk Cousins were unable to agree on a long term contract extension before the July 17 deadline for franchise tagged players. Cousins will now play the 2017 season under the franchise tag for the second straight season, which neither side is particularly unhappy about. However, the Redskins made some blunders in their lack of signing Cousins that could cause tension between the two sides.
In a statement made by the team on Monday, Bruce Allen stated that the Redskins had offered Cousins record guarantees and that those had been turned down. In reality, the guarantees were high, but only by default and the incentive based money paled in comparison to deals for other franchise caliber quarterbacks. What the organization did was try to throw Cousins under the bus. They wanted to show that he was to blame for the lack of signing. In reality, they never gave him a good enough offer.
On Tuesday, Cousins discussed the situation with poise and grace when appearing on 106.7 the Fan. Despite all that the Redskins had said about him, the quarterback was complementary of the organization and explained his decision not to sign the deal. Per the MMQB’s Albert Breer, Cousins said the following of his future.
Cousins asked point-blank if he wants to be with the Redskins long-term: "It has always been my first choice to be with the Redskins."
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) July 18, 2017
This is an encouraging development. Cousins has always been complementary of his Washington teammates, but there were definitely questions about the leadership in the organization after this offseason. That was likely one of the reasons that Cousins did not sign a deal this offseason. He wanted more time to evaluate the Redskins organization after their front office upheaval. Last year, the Redskins wanted more time to evaluate Cousins. The tables turned, and it made sense for Cousins to wait on a deal to potentially drive up his value in a free agent bidding war.
Contractual negotiations aside, Cousins spoke on the show of his desire to stay with the Redskins. He spoke of positive relationships with his teammates, Jay Gruden, and even owner Daniel Snyder. He believes that the Redskins have a solid team and he wants to be able to win. As CSN’s Rich Tandler said, Cousins took the high road to an entirely new level. He deserves praise for that.
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Cousins is going to give it his all, even though he is on a one year deal. And in spite of all the negative reports about the contract deadline, no doors have closed for Washington. Cousins is going to try and get the offer he deserves, but at the end of the day, he is hoping that offer will come from the Redskins.