Quarterbacks Cousins, Keenum on the move as NFL market revs up

Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins is poised to become the highestpaid quarterback in the NFL by signing a three-year deal with the Minnesota Vikings, multiple US media reports said Tuesday.

Cousins, one of the most sought-after targets in the off-season quarterback market, will sign a fully guaranteed $84 million deal worth $28 million a season.

That salary tops the $27.5 million a year paid to Jimmy Garoppolo of the San Francisco 49ers, currently the league’s highest-paid quarterback.

The reports came after Cousins bade a public farewell to Washington on Monday. “As I’m about to make one of the bigger decisions of my life, I’ll be saying goodbye to my familiar life as a Redskin,” he wrote on his website.

Cousins threw for 4,093 yards (3,742 meters) last season – the third straight year he has topped 4,000 yards.

The 29-year-old had been expected to leave ever since the Redskins signed Alex Smith from the Kansas City Chiefs earlier this year.

Cousins’ imminent arrival at Minnesota means Vikings quarterback Case Keenum – who piloted the franchise to within one win of the Super Bowl last season – is set to leave after free agency opened Wednesday.

Keenum is poised to join the Denver Broncos, who have struggled to settle on a starting quarterback since the retirement of Peyton Manning in 2016.

There was upheaval too at the New England Patriots, with veteran wide receiver Danny Amendola – one of quarterback Tom Brady’s most reliable targets – reported to be on the way out of Boston.

Amendola is set to join the Patriots AFC East rivals the Miami Dolphins on a two-year deal.

The Patriots have already said their goodbyes to cornerback Malcolm Butler, who was surprisingly benched shortly before last month’s Super Bowl defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Butler is lining up a move to the Tennessee Titans, who have offered the defender a five-year contract worth $61 million, which includes more than $30 million guaranteed.