On the day that Kirk Cousins officially signed his franchise tag tender with the Washington Redskins, a whole heck of a lot news is coming out regarding the drama in D.C.
Earlier in the day it was reported that Cousins told those close to him that he will be playing with the San Francisco 49ers in either 2017 or 2018. This seemed to fit a pattern of Cousins pretty much telling everyone who will listen that he does not want to play for the Redskins.
It also comes just a day after Cousins himself reportedly went directly to Redskins owner Daniel Snyder in order to ask for a trade, presumably to the 49ers (more on that here).
Now set to earn a cool $24 million under the franchise tag in 2017, Cousins is doubling down on his stance.
https://twitter.com/CHICKatCSN/status/840254020514152450
Unfortunately for Washington, president Bruce Allen is its chief personnel decision maker after the team fired general manager Scot McCloughan. It doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere.
If Cousins refuses to even negotiate a long-term deal with the Redskins, they will then be placed in an unenviable situation. Do the Skins let Cousins play out the 2017 season, knowing full well he will sign with San Francisco next March?
Do they look to get something for him in a trade? Another possibility here is that the Redskins place the tag on Cousins for the third consecutive year next March, guaranteeing him nearly $35 million for the 2018 season.
Really, there doesn’t seem to be any avenue for this situation to play out in a manner that is beneficial to the Redskins.