Redskins’ Cousins ‘in good place’ as training camp opens
A long-term contract for Kirk Cousins never materialized after negotiations with the Washington Redskins stalled because his agent opted not to return a counteroffer to the team.
So the quarterback — once again — enters a season with a one-year deal.
Despite that, Cousins insisted he’s in a “good place” Thursday even though uncertainty about his future remains.
“That would probably be one of the misconceptions — I don’t know that I’ve ever bet on myself,” Cousins said after the team finished its first walk-through of training camp.
“I think I’ve bet on the system. And it has nothing to do with myself. I’m just going out playing, and there has never been anything but positive feelings. I’m excited to get to work here. My wife and I love it here, and we’re in a good place.
“I’m living the dream being a starting quarterback in the NFL. I got my hands full this season with 16 games. I talked about how in the offseason the ball is in the team’s court ... but from Week 1 to Week 17, the ball is in my court. And I gotta go play football well, so that’s where my focus is.”
Washington assigned the franchise tag to Cousins in February for the second consecutive year, though this one was an exclusive tender, meaning no other team could negotiate with him. The two sides had until July 17 to reach a long-term contract, but the deadline passed without a deal. Team President Bruce Allen released a statement that day saying Cousins “has made it clear that he prefers to play on a yearto-year basis.”
Cousins will turn 29 next month and is due $23.94 million this year, a 20% increase of his 2016 salary. Allen has said that using a third franchise tag next year has not been ruled out even though it would cost Washington more than $34 million.
But because Cousins and his agent, Mike McCartney, opted not to respond to a proposal the Redskins sent after this year’s NFL draft, speculation has emerged that Cousins wants to test the open market in 2018. For his part, the sixth-year quarterback has consistently said he wants to remain with the team that drafted him in 2012.
Four offensive players declined Thursday to talk about the business aspect of Cousins’ contract. Each, however, heaped a strong vote of confidence in him.
“Kirk hasn’t changed,” tight end Vernon Davis told USA TODAY Sports. “He’s been the same guy since I’ve been here. He’s our leader, and we fully support him because we have seen the things he does when no one is watching, even though that business side of things isn’t necessarily worked out.”
Newly signed receiver Terrelle Pryor said he and Cousins are capable of “great things” this season.
Coach Jay Gruden said he does not plan on giving backup Colt McCoy or third-string passer Nate Sudfeld more practice repetitions than normal even though one of them might have to replace Cousins in 2018.
“This is Kirk’s team right now, and it’s our job to get him ready for (Week 1) and really surround him and make him feel good about the people around him,” Gruden said Thursday.
“We do have some new weapons around him, so it’s a matter of getting him ready.”
Last season, Cousins completed 67% of his passes for a teamrecord 4,917 yards with 25 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He led Washington to an 8-7-1 record. A Week 17 loss to the New York Giants ended the team’s bid for a playoff berth.
“I feel good,” Cousins said. “I’m ready to go. I’ve been feeling good the last several weeks. We’ve done a good job communicating with the team. We’re all on the same page. We’ve done everything we possibly could do to get that settled and move forward.
“I think we’re all in a good place right now, and we’ve got enough to worry about trying to get our offense playing well so that we can have a great season so that I can be back in future years.”