Doug Williams: Kirk Cousins will be a ‘free agent, for sure’

INDIANAPOLIS — Redskins Senior VP of player personnel Doug Williams can’t publicly discuss the Alex Smith trade until it can become official in March.

But he can make comments about how the organization views Kirk Cousins.

Williams said Cousins will be a “free agent, for sure” — and added the Redskins haven’t discussed using a third straight franchise tag on the quarterback. 

“I don’t think so, but it’s not too late,” Williams said when asked about the possibility of the tag. “We haven’t really talked about that. I think the media comes up with those scenarios more than what we’ve talked about because I can’t remember one meeting [on] the possibility of tagging him.”

Teams have until March 6 to hand down a franchise tag, which would give Cousins a one-year, $34.5 million contract. The idea of tagging Cousins — and then trading him to a willing team — was floated because the Redskins aren’t guaranteed compensation if Cousins leaves in free agency.

But the scenario carried a number of risks, including it would tie up the Redskins’ cap space without a guarantee they could trade him. Cousins would almost certainly file a grievance, too, creating a battle over the legality of a team being able to use the tag if they have no intention of signing him long-term.

So why did the Redskins prefer Smith to Cousins? Williams answered that in an indirect way.

Basically, the situation came down to money.

“I hear about the cap, percentages of cap and all that, man — it’s about winning,” Williams said. “… But when you got a team around you, you’ve gotta look around the team as a whole and find out how much it’s going to take, and what it’s about. This is a team sport.

“I’m not saying giving a hometown discount or anything like that, but I think you’ve got to be real about the team, too. Because if you get all the money, and then you’ve got nobody around you to play with, then what good is playing?”

The Redskins did invest significantly in Smith, giving him a four-year, $94 million extension with $71 million guaranteed for injury. But that was less than what Cousins will likely make once he hits the market.

In February, Cousins said he understood the Redskins’ decision to move on because he wasn’t willing to discuss a new contract before March 14, the date free agency begins. 

With Smith’s extension, the Redskins now have some stability at the quarterback position moving forward. Before, the Redskins were essentially going year-to-year with Cousins, failing to strike a long-term deal.

The Redskins are projected to have $34 million in cap space, and have 17 unrestricted free agents besides Cousins. Williams said they’ve offered a contract to linebacker Zach Brown, a pending free agent, and are waiting to hear back from his agents.

But just because the Redskins have cap room and security at quarterback, Williams said that doesn’t mean they’ll necessarily chase a “big” free agent.

“Sometimes you look around, big might not be better,” Williams said. “… I think at the end of the day, it’s about team and the people we have around that. I think we have a pretty good team, and so I don’t think we need to go out and spend big just to say we spend big.”