Kirk Cousins rumors: 5 best fits in NFL free agency

Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins is set to make a boat load of money in 2018 NFL free agency. Here are the five best landing spots for Cousins.

No player entering 2018 NFL free agency will offer more intrigue that Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins. Cousins is coming off his second straight year of being franchise tagged by Washington. He made $19,953,000 in 2016 and $23,943,600 in 2017.

While Washington didn’t make the NFC playoffs either year, Cousins has emerged as one of the most accurate passers in the NFL and a guy that can bring stability to the quarterback position inside of a chaotic organization. Simply put, Washington liked him, but didn’t fall in love with the guy.

Despite being a quarterback that can win roughly eight games a year with sub-par receiving talent in tough division, Washington clearly decided to move on from Cousins in 2018. This is because the Redskins traded for Kansas City Chiefs Pro Bowl quarterback Alex Smith a few weeks ago for promising cornerback Kendall Fuller and a future draft. Washington has said that they might franchise tag Cousins a third time, but we all know that the Redskins organization is lying about that.

Cousins is at his best a top-12 quarterback in the league. However, he is set to make the most money of any quarterback to date. Cousins is both talented and not yet 30 years old. Meaning he can go to a contender in 2018 or be able to land in a spot where a team is in the midst of a rebuild. Here are the five best landing spots for the former Washington signal caller.

As we are about to enter the 2018 NFL season, the Arizona Cardinals are the only team in the NFC without an answer at the starting quarterback position. Former starter Carson Palmer retired after the 2017 NFL season, along with head coach Bruce Arians. Arizona hired former Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator Steve Walks as its next head coach with Mike McCoy as its offensive coordinator. McCoy is best known for his two stints as the Denver Broncos offensive coordinator, as well as his four-year stint as the head coach of the then San Diego Chargers.

Arizona has the No. 15 pick in the upcoming 2018 NFL Draft. So there is a chance that the Cardinals could trade up to the top-10 to draft either Josh Allen out of Wyoming or Baker Mayfield out of Oklahoma. However, that would indicate that Arizona is all in on a rebuild. While that might inevitably be the case, Arizona can reload with Cousins and stay competitive in an improved NFC West.

The Cardinals will have to pay Cousins handsomely, and that could be an issue as they only have $23,014,467 in available cap space. That’s good enough for 20th in the NFL. However, the pairing of Cousins and McCoy could help the Cardinals keep pace in the NFC West.

Wilks might be a defensive-minded coach, but a potential Cousins/McCoy pairing could hang tough with Jimmy Garoppolo/Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay/Jared Goff. Though Russell Wilson is a better quarterback than Cousins, one would think that McCoy is a better offensive coordinator than Brian Schottenheimer with the Seattle Seahawks. Arizona could be in play for Cousins, but cap issues and a revamped NFC West could make this a tougher entry point for Cousins than we think. Not a bad fit though.