There might be more drama to come with Kirk Cousins and the Washington Redskins.
According to an ESPN report, the Redskins are considering using the franchise tag on Cousins — with the intention of trading him for compensation.
The Redskins have until March 6 to decide if they want to give Cousins a third straight franchise tag, worth $34.5 million for one year. Teams can start handing out franchise tags on Feb. 20.
Last week, the Redskins agreed to acquire quarterback Alex Smith from the Kansas City Chiefs for a third-round pick and cornerback Kendall Fuller.
Cousins won’t become a free agent officially until March 14 and until then, Washington has some wiggle room to try and hold leverage over Cousins’ situation.
The Redskins tagging Cousins again, however, carries with it major risk.
If Cousins is tagged, his $34.5 million salary would count toward the Redskins’ salary cap.
Cousins could also delay signing the tag for months, meaning the quarterback could tie up the Redskins’ cap space in free agency.
The Redskins can’t trade Cousins either if he does not sign under the tag.
“This only happens if Skins know 100 percent that they have a deal before putting tag on him,” former NFL executive Joe Banner tweeted. “Highly unlikely, but not impossible. The risk of getting stuck is far too high.”
So why would the Redskins still want to control Cousins’ contract? ESPN reported the Redskins would rather get something in return rather than letting him walk for nothing.
But Cousins could also undercut any return by telling teams that express interest in trading for him that he would not sign a long-term contract in 2018. This, in theory, would dampen the potential haul the Redskins could get for Cousins, as a team would most likely trade for Cousins with the intention of working out a longer deal.
When a player is given the franchise tag, teams have until July 16 to negotiate a long-term deal. Once that date passes, as it did for Cousins and the Redskins the last two years, players are stuck on a one-year deal.
Cousins has been open about his desire in testing free agency, and he’s closer to it now than ever before. He’s also likely to become the highest-paid player in NFL history, so there is no reason Cousins would be willing to “help” the Redskins.
Making the rounds in the lead-up to the Super Bowl, Cousins said Friday he was surprised the Redskins traded for Smith. He found out after just completing a workout in his Minneapolis hotel.
Cousins said he did not speak to the Redskins until the morning after the trade. Cousins told USA Today he spoke to owner Dan Snyder and coach Jay Gruden, but not team president Bruce Allen.
Cousins previously told the Redskins he did not have any intention of negotiating a new contract until March.
“They couldn’t afford to wait, and so they had to make a move,” Cousins told ESPN. “I understood that. They wanted to do a deal, but because I wanted to go a little longer, it put them in a tough spot.”
The player’s union, according to former NFL executive Andrew Brandt, could file a grievance against the Redskins if Cousins is tagged. He tweeted the tag was “negotiated into CBA for teams to have ’intent’ to sign players long term.”
The Redskins, though, would be eligible for some compensation for Cousins in free agency.
The most Washington could receive is a third-round compensatory pick for th 2019 draft.
But compensatory picks are determined by the NFL management council and there is no guarantee that Cousins signing with a different team would net a third-rounder, especially if the Redskins sign other free agents.
That’s why it makes sense for the Redskins to at least explore trading Cousins. But the decision is a gamble — and one that could easily backfire.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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