How Andrew Luck Deal Could Impact Kirk Cousins
- Luck’s new contract will have little influence over Kirk Cousins‘ potential next contract with the Redskins, writes Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com. Rather, the quarterback will likely be operating under the franchise value, which ends up being around $78.36MM over three seasons.
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Redskins Notes: Cousins, Scherff
- If the Redskins are going to lock up franchise-tagged quarterback Kirk Cousins to a long-term contract by the July 15 deadline, it’s going to take roughly $60MM in guarantees – $35MM of which would need to be fully guaranteed – and a $20MM average annual value, according to CBS Sports’ Joel Corry (Twitter link via Grant Paulsen of 106.7 The Fan). Such a deal would place Cousins sixth among quarterbacks in guarantees, tying him with MVP Cam Newton, and just outside the top 10 signal-callers in yearly value. As of now, it appears likely Cousins will play this season under the $19.95MM franchise tender.
- Redskins right guard Brandon Scherff had a terrific rookie season after switching from right tackle last summer, starting all of the club’s games, missing only one snap and ranking as Pro Football Focus’ 26th-best performer at guard among 81 qualifiers. Expectations for Scherff are significantly higher in 2016, though, considering he was the fifth overall pick in the 2015 draft and is now entering his second year at the position, write Tarik El-Bashir and Rich Tandler of CSN Mid-Atlantic.
Will Redskins, Kirk Cousins Agree To Extension By Deadline?
- Mike Jones of the Washington Post wonders if the Redskins and Kirk Cousins will come to an agreement on an extension by the July 15th deadline. The writer notes that the two sides have made little progress, and while the team will make another push closer to training camp, there’s not much optimism that a deal will get done.
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Redskins Center Battle
- As Roster Resource details, the Redskins are expected to start Kory Lichtensteiger at center, with Josh LeRibeus and Austin Reiter serving as backups. According to Rich Tandler of CSNMidAtlantic.com, Lichtensteiger is the only member of that trio who can be considered a lock to make the 53-man roster, and he’s highly unlikely to face any competition for the starting job. The 31-year-old Lichtensteiger did miss 11 games due to injury last season, so Washington needs to have an effective contingency plan in place in the event that the veteran center goes down once again.
Redskins Lack Running Back Depth
Andrew Luck‘s six-year, $140MM extension featuring $87MM in guarantees makes the deal the Panthers gave Cam Newton last June look even more like a bargain, opines Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer. Carolina awarded five years, $103MM and $60MM in guarantees to Newton, who proceeded to lead the Panthers to a 15-1 regular-season record and a Super Bowl berth in 2015-16. Newton also parlayed 45 touchdowns and nearly 4,500 total yards into NFL MVP honors.
Elsewhere around the NFC…
- Lions first-rounder Taylor Decker is on track to start at left tackle, thus sending veteran Riley Reiff to the right side, according to Kyle Meinke of MLive.com. Decker – an ex-Ohio State stalwart whom the Lions took 16th overall – manned left tackle for every OTA and minicamp rep that was open to the media, per Meinke, who contends that the 6-foot-7, 310-pounder has the physicality and blocking skills necessary to help turn around the Lions’ last-ranked rushing attack.
- A lack of established rushing options puts the Redskins in danger of having a one-dimensional offense this year, writes Master Tesfatsion of the Washington Post. Including starter Matt Jones – who averaged only 3.4 yards per carry as a rookie and had as many fumbles as touchdowns (four) – the Redskins have a slew of unproven ball carriers, as Roster Resource shows. The most seasoned of the group is Chris Thompson, who has 15 games (38 rushes) under his belt and has dealt with recent back trouble, notes Tesfatsion. Of course, it’s worth mentioning that the Redskins’ Alfred Morris-led ground game had the third-worst yards-per-carry mark in the league in 2015, but that didn’t stop the team from winning the NFC East.
- Earlier Wednesday, the Seahawks made receiver Doug Baldwin‘s four-year contract extension official. We also learned that Cowboys second-round rookie Jaylon Smith is unlikely to play this year.
Reactions To Andrew Luck’s Extension
Colts owner Jim Irsay said in February that Andrew Luck‘s extension – which he signed Wednesday – would be “shocking.” Now that it’s official, though, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk disagrees, arguing that the only true surprise is that Luck fell short of $25MM per year and accepted $23.3MM annually through 2021. Even though Luck’s contract is now the richest in NFL history, Florio contends that the signal-caller could have held out for more money, perhaps by going year to year under the franchise tag. Instead, as Florio tweets, the soon-to-be 27-year-old settled for a team-friendly pact.
Here’s more on Luck’s deal and what it means for the league:
- Dan Graziano of ESPN.com is in lockstep with Florio, noting that Luck’s guaranteed-at-signing total ($44MM) is significantly less than the $60MM Dolphins defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh received as a free agent in 2015 and adding that pushing $27MM in guarantees into the third and fourth years of the deal carries too much risk for Luck. Although the cap has risen 26.2 percent since Aaron Rodgers signed for $22MM per year in 2013, the top QB salary has gone up by only 5.9 percent, observes Graziano, who adds that Luck’s accord should be a letdown for other passers – including the Redskins’ Kirk Cousins.
- Conversely, CSN Mid-Atlantic’s Rich Tandler opines that Luck’s extension likely has Cousins smiling, writing that Cousins’ agent can now use Luck’s deal as a ceiling and Brock Osweiler‘s $18MM AAV as a floor for his franchise-tagged client. Cousins, a fourth-rounder in the 2012 draft (Luck was the No. 1 overall pick that year), will rake in $19.95MM this season if he and the Redskins don’t reach a long-term accord by the July 15 deadline. As of last week, the 27-year-old Cousins and the Redskins hadn’t made progress in contract talks.
- Both Luck and the Colts fell well short of expectations during an 8-8 campaign in 2015. After leading the league with 40 touchdown passes in 2014, Luck missed nine games because of injuries and was underwhelming on the field, completing just 55.3 percent of throws on 6.42 yards per attempt and adding 15 TDs against 12 interceptions. Nevertheless, that didn’t faze Irsay, who fully expected to make Luck the highest-paid player in the league. “You look at the total body of work,” he said (via Mike Wells of ESPN). Prior to 2015, Luck started 52 straight games (playoffs included), led the Colts to three consecutive double-digit-win outputs, and threw for 86 scores and nearly 13,000 yards in the regular season.
- Luck is now one of five important members of the Colts’ offense under team control through at least 2019, as Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star points out (on Twitter). Left tackle Anthony Castonzo, first-round center Ryan Kelly and tight end Dwayne Allen are all locked up until the end of the 2019 season, while Indy has No. 1 receiver T.Y. Hilton in its grasp through 2020. With a fifth-year option in his contract, Kelly’s deal could also take him through the conclusion of the 2020 campaign.
Will Mack Brown Get Last Redskins RB Spot?
- Mike Jones of The Washington Post has Mack Brown making the Redskins‘ 53-man roster over Rob Kelley and Keith Marshall, a projection that is surprising to some. Jones says that’s because Marshall, a seventh-round pick, has hardly practiced this offseason due to a hamstring injury. Kelley, a UDFA, has not been as consistent as Brown and is at something of a disadvantage in understanding the offense since Brown was on the team’s taxi squad last year. Still, things could change between now and the final roster cutdown and Washington could even wind up carrying four running backs on the roster.
Redskins Notes: Thompson, Marshall, Cousins
The Eagles surprised many onlookers this offseason when they gave Sam Bradford a hefty extension while also drafted QB Carson Wentz No. 2 overall and adding free agent Chase Daniel. With two new signal callers behind the incumbent starter Bradford, are the Eagles striking fear into NFC East opponents? John Keim of ESPN.com doesn’t believe so. The Redskins respected Philly’s passing game last year, but Bradford is now in a new offense (again) and the backups aren’t necessarily going to bolster the passing game in 2016. Daniel can capably run Doug Pederson‘s offense if called upon and Wentz has star potential, but neither player makes a difference in the here and now, in Keim’s view.
- Right now, Mike Jones of The Washington Post only sees the Redskins carrying three running backs on the roster – Matt Jones, Chris Thompson, and Mack Brown. Even though Thompson has durability questions, coaches like him as a change-of-pace back and he figures to make the cut. If there are only three RBs on the 53-man roster, that would leave seventh-round pick Keith Marshall out after he missed a number of practices with a hamstring strain. UDFA Robert Kelley is also vying to make the cut and the Tulane product’s speed and versatility could get him over the hump.
- In a Q&A with Jason Cole of Bleacher Report, Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins claimed that he is not focused on his contract situation as he gets set to play out the 2016 season on the one-year, ~$20MM tender. While talks are described as amicable between both sides, they haven’t been terribly productive. As of this writing, the two sides are not expected to hammer out an extension before the July 15th deadline.
Pending Luck Deal Could Drive Redskins To Act On Cousins
The latest reports on contract talks between the Redskins and Kirk Cousins suggested that the two sides may not be reaching a long-term pact prior to the July 15 deadline, and that Cousins may consequently play out the 2016 season on the $19.95MM franchise tender. As Albert Breer of TheMMQB pointed out, Washington could be playing with fire if, as expected, Andrew Luck signs a record-breaking extension with the Colts and Cousins turns in another strong year.
Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com echoes those sentiments. He believes that, as we are still nearly three weeks away from July 15, both player and team are exercising the appropriate amount of patience and are right to not rush into a deal, but he does note that the Redskins have to be worried about the pending Luck contract. As Tandler writes, Washington could lock up Cousins today for something in the neighborhood of $20MM per year, but if they wait until next season, the club could end up paying more than $40MM more over the life of Cousins’ contract than if it acts now.
Should Redskins Pursue Arian Foster?
Rich Tandler of RealRedskins.com pondered whether the Redskins should look into signing free agent running back Arian Foster. The tailback is reportedly expected to be healthy in time for training camp and three teams have expressed interest in him this offseason, though it’s unclear if the Redskins are among those teams.
Currently, the Redskins have Matt Jones, Chris Thompson, rookie Keith Marshall, Mack Brown, Kelsey Young, and Rob Kelley on their running back depth chart, as shown on Roster Resource. Tandler believes that the Redskins should do their due diligence when it comes to Foster, though he expresses concern about the veteran’s price tag. Personally, however, I don’t see Foster’s asking price being all that high given the injury issues which limited him to four games in 2015 and just 25 games across the last three seasons.
- Kyshoen Jarrett‘s status with the Redskins appears to be as murky as ever. Recently, Jay Gruden dodged questions about the former Virginia Tech standout’s long-term future with the team, and that makes it seem like he’s a longshot to contribute in 2016, CSNMidAtlantic.com’s Tarik El-Bashir writes. As a result, El-Bashir doesn’t project Jarrett to make the 53-man roster. Instead, he sees Washington going into 2016 with Will Blackmon, David Bruton, Su’a Cravens (who may play more at linebacker), DeAngelo Hall, and Duke Ihenacho at the safety spots.
- Will the Redskins and Kirk Cousins hammer out an extension before July 15th? Click here for the latest.