Kirk Cousins is headed for free agency, but he's not going to get very far. Washington can retain him with the franchise tag, if necessary. Plus both sides are apparently talking -- depending which report you believe -- and there's mutual interest in getting something done.
Talks are ongoing according to this report, which disputes an ESPN story that the sides had broken off talks. Instead, it says Washington and Cousins' agent are still talking about a deal.
This is probably largely about leverage and posturing -- one side trying to get the other side to adjust their demands. Washington, certainly, has no choice but to bring Cousins back -- they don't have another option, and Cousins thrived in Jay Gruden's offensive system.
And it's just as true of Cousins. What certainty could he have that he could go anywhere else and be as successful. Cleveland? St. Louis? He'd be crazy to gamble on himself to the extent of thinking he'd have another big year in a brand new system.
Whether it gets done via the franchise tag or a long-term deal, Cousins isn't going anywhere. It would make too little sense for both sides to have that happen.
Taking another look at a table from last week -- quarterback ratings in 2015 -- it's clear Washington would be crazy to let Cousins walk. Quarterbacks better than him in that regard a year ago were nearly all MVP candidates.
| QUARTERBACK PASSER RATINGS, 2015 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | TD | Int | Sck | Rate |
| Russell Wilson, Sea. | 329 | 483 | 68.1 | 4,024 | 34 | 8 | 45 | 110.1 |
| Andy Dalton, Cin. | 255 | 386 | 66.1 | 3,250 | 25 | 7 | 20 | 106.2 |
| Carson Palmer, Ariz. | 342 | 537 | 63.7 | 4,671 | 35 | 11 | 25 | 104.6 |
| Tom Brady, N.E. | 402 | 624 | 64.4 | 4,770 | 36 | 7 | 38 | 102.2 |
| Kirk Cousins, Wash. | 379 | 543 | 69.8 | 4,166 | 29 | 11 | 26 | 101.6 |
| Drew Brees, N.O. | 428 | 627 | 68.3 | 4,870 | 32 | 11 | 31 | 101.0 |
| Tyrod Taylor, Buff. | 242 | 380 | 63.7 | 3,035 | 20 | 6 | 36 | 99.4 |
| Cam Newton, Car. | 296 | 495 | 59.8 | 3,837 | 35 | 10 | 33 | 99.4 |
| AJ McCarron, Cin. | 79 | 119 | 66.4 | 854 | 6 | 2 | 12 | 97.1 |
| Matthew Stafford, Det. | 398 | 592 | 67.2 | 4,262 | 32 | 13 | 44 | 97.0 |
| Alex Smith, K.C. | 307 | 470 | 65.3 | 3,486 | 20 | 7 | 45 | 95.4 |
| Ben Roethlisberger, Pitt. | 319 | 469 | 68 | 3,938 | 21 | 16 | 20 | 94.5 |
| Philip Rivers, S.D. | 437 | 661 | 66.1 | 4,792 | 29 | 13 | 40 | 93.8 |
| Eli Manning, NYG | 387 | 618 | 62.6 | 4,432 | 35 | 14 | 27 | 93.6 |
| Josh McCown, Clev. | 186 | 292 | 63.7 | 2,109 | 12 | 4 | 23 | 93.3 |
| Aaron Rodgers, G.B. | 347 | 572 | 60.7 | 3,821 | 31 | 8 | 46 | 92.7 |
| Jay Cutler, Chi. | 311 | 483 | 64.4 | 3,659 | 21 | 11 | 29 | 92.3 |
| Marcus Mariota, Tenn. | 230 | 370 | 62.2 | 2,818 | 19 | 10 | 38 | 91.5 |
| Brian Hoyer, Hou. | 224 | 369 | 60.7 | 2,606 | 19 | 7 | 25 | 91.4 |
| Derek Carr, Oak. | 350 | 573 | 61.1 | 3,987 | 32 | 13 | 31 | 91.1 |
| Matt Ryan, Atl. | 407 | 614 | 66.3 | 4,591 | 21 | 16 | 30 | 89.0 |
| Ryan Tannehill, Mia. | 363 | 586 | 61.9 | 4,208 | 24 | 12 | 45 | 88.7 |
| Teddy Bridgewater, Minn. | 292 | 447 | 65.3 | 3,231 | 14 | 9 | 44 | 88.7 |
| Blake Bortles, Jax. | 355 | 606 | 58.6 | 4,428 | 35 | 18 | 51 | 88.2 |
| Ryan Fitzpatrick, NYJ | 335 | 562 | 59.6 | 3,905 | 31 | 15 | 19 | 88.0 |
| Case Keenum, St.L. | 76 | 125 | 60.8 | 828 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 87.7 |
| Brock Osweiler, Den. | 170 | 275 | 61.8 | 1,967 | 10 | 6 | 23 | 86.4 |
| Sam Bradford, Phil. | 346 | 532 | 65 | 3,725 | 19 | 14 | 28 | 86.4 |
| Blaine Gabbert, S.F. | 178 | 282 | 63.1 | 2,031 | 10 | 7 | 25 | 86.2 |
| Jameis Winston, T.B. | 312 | 535 | 58.3 | 4,042 | 22 | 15 | 27 | 84.2 |
| Matt Hasselbeck, Ind. | 156 | 256 | 60.9 | 1,690 | 9 | 5 | 16 | 84.0 |
| Joe Flacco, Balt. | 266 | 413 | 64.4 | 2,791 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 83.1 |
--Andy Richardson
