WASHINGTON — As we enter the window in which NFL teams can apply the franchise tag to pending free agents Wednesday, there’s only one real choice for the Washington Redskins.
Tag Kirk Cousins. Again.
I know there’s been some talk of using the tag on DeSean Jackson or Pierre Garcon, the 30-something wideouts that have each helped make Cousins look good these last two seasons. I know die-hard fans don’t like the sound of another season of contract questions surrounding their starting quarterback. Some are shouting, “Stop messing around and sign Kirk to a long-term deal!” The fear of a full season of Colt McCoy or some rookie with half the chops of a Pro Bowl performer like Cousins is real. But let me explain my position a bit further.
I think the Redskins should absolutely sign Cousins to a long-term contract. He’s played two very good seasons that just happen to be among the most prolific in team history. His 4,917 passing yards in 2016 pummeled his own record of 4,166 in 2015. He’s completed 68 percent of his passes over the last two seasons, tossing 54 TDs and only 23 INTs. That matches up favorably with this year’s league MVP, Matt Ryan (68 percent completion percentage, 59 TDs, 23 INTs in the same two-year span).
However, I’m taking into account the way the Redskins’ front office has handled this situation. Team President Bruce Allen and general manager Scot McCloughan have said on record they want to keep Cousins here long term, but their actions come off as foot-dragging. It’s almost as if they want to keep franchising him until an obvious upgrade becomes available.
Chances are slim that this will happen before they run out of tags. Assuming they tag him in 2017 at the cost of $23.94 million, the ‘Skins can only tag him one more time for a steep $34.5 million in 2018, meaning they will have spent $78.39 million over three years to keep a guy they’re lukewarm about. For close to half that sum, the Redskins could have ponied up the guaranteed money to keep him here long term … but I digress.
Furthermore, I have to think there’s only so much goodwill Cousins will maintain through this process. He happily bet on himself last season and continues to say he only wants to be where he’s wanted. But it’s hard to feel wanted by an organization that seemingly keeps telling you “OK, good job but show me one more time…”
In effect, the Redskins can tag Cousins in 2017 without any hard feelings, but consider this: Cousins would be the first QB in NFL history to get franchise tagged in consecutive seasons. The tag was designed to give a team extra time to work out a long-term deal, not continually postpone a commitment to a particular player. While the ‘Skins are spending top dollar to figure things out with Cousins, their porous defense continues to spoil any hopes of them being a real playoff contender.
If a $100 million deal with $50 million in guarantees gets the deal done, the Redskins should do it. That’s fair market value for a Top 10 QB and that’s what Cousins has been for two years. He has a sack full of team passing records and has led the team to back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in 20 years. It’s time to treat him — and pay him — like a franchise QB.
The franchise tag should be a bridge to that payday, not a substitute for it.
