Cousins challenged by changes on, off the field
One way or another, Kirk Cousins is gearing up for a big life change.
He’s the first quarterback in NFL history to carry the franchise tag for consecutive seasons, and the prevailing story line is whether this is his last hurrah in Washington.
But before that contract situation is resolved, there will be another type of drama.
Cousins and his wife, Julie, are expecting their first child next month. The due date is Sept. 18, the Monday after Washington’s Week 2 road game against the Los Angeles Rams, now coached by the departed coordinator Cousins reveres, Sean McVay.
“We’ll see,” Cousins told USA TODAY Sports this week, unwinding in the cold tub after his
final practice of training camp in Richmond, Va. “The baby will come when it comes, and we will react accordingly.”
Cousins, who turns 29 on Saturday, hardly seems stressed about his contract, which is understandable. The 2012 fourthround pick will earn $23.9 million this year. If owner Dan Snyder and Co. let Cousins walk next year, he’ll clean up on the free agent market. He has the type of leverage NFL players rarely possess, even though teams seldom get to this point with their quarterbacks, especially given Cousins’ growth in coach Jay Gruden’s system.
Cousins isn’t sweating business nearly as much as he seems to nervously anticipating fatherhood.
What if the baby comes early? “Welcome to the NFL,” he said with a grin. “This league hasn’t been one big, easy experience that you can map out in advance. I guess the birth of our first child will be no different.”
On the practice field, he appears confident and relaxed as he begins his third year as starter. In a red-zone drill last weekend, Cousins scrambled while looking for a receiver for at least 15 seconds — Aaron Rodgers style — before floating to his left and firing a strike to Terrelle Pryor in the end zone. Cousins pumped his fist and celebrated wildly.
“He’s moving around and doing stuff, but we all know that in a game he might not have that kind of time,” Doug Williams, the franchise’s former Super Bowl hero, told USA TODAY Sports.
“So let him have fun.” Williams, recently promoted to Washington’s senior vice president of personnel, is positioned better than most to grasp the challenge confronting Cousins, whose team lost four of six down the stretch last season to miss the playoffs. Now he’s lost McVay, the adept play-caller who had his fingers all over Cousins’ rise, and a pair of 1,000-yard receivers (DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon).
“I don’t think it puts more pressure on Kirk,” Williams says. We’ll see.
Pryor, signed during free agency, is a converted quarterback who shined as a receiver for the Cleveland Browns last year. Josh Doctson, the 2016 first-round pick, was sidelined for virtually all of his rookie season with Achilles injuries.
“The key is that Kirk has got to play with the same mentality that he played with last year,” Williams said, “and that’s getting the ball to the guys and letting them make the plays. I’m not going to say that with D-Jax and Pierre not being here that we won’t be as productive. I think we will.”
Cousins passed for a franchiserecord 4,917 yards in 2016. But for all of those yards, he had a middling 25 touchdown passes. He needs better punch in the red zone, which could be aided if tight end Jordan Reed is healthy, while adapting to his new targets.
“Change is a big part in this league,” Cousins said. “I respect the quarterbacks who, despite a lot of change with coaches and teammates, have been able to play at a high level, year in and year out. I’m fully aware I’m not going to be playing with the same receivers that I’m playing with today. You learn to expect change and turnover, and then you’ve got to find a way to produce.”
Cousins doesn’t sound like he’s resigned to the widespread narrative that he’ll leave next year — and maybe reunite with Kyle Shanahan, the new San Francisco 49ers coach and ex-Washington coordinator. Cousins maintains a good spin on now-frozen contract talks with Washington.
“Behind the scenes, it’s played out a lot more straightforward than it has for the reader or listener,” he said.
He sounds open to the idea of ultimately striking a long-term deal to stay put.
“I like my coaches, I like my offensive system, I like my teammates,” Cousins said. “My wife’s happy. We’re in a good place. As long as I can control what I can ... the results will settle themselves.”
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