NFL Rumors: 5 Kirk Cousins landing spots that would make a Super Bowl contender

2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

One of the bigger surprises in the NFL last season was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who most experts had written off following the retirement of quarterback Tom Brady. Former No. 1 pick Baker Mayfield was signed to be a stopgap and guided the Buccaneers to the Divisional Round of the playoffs, where they fought hard in a loss to the Detroit Lions.

Mayfield is set to be a free agent again this year and Tampa Bay will have to make a hard decision about his future. There is no doubt that Mayfield was a bargain at $4 million in 2023, a figure that will increase significantly regardless of whether Tampa Bay signs him to a long-term contract or uses the franchise tag.

While there is still some projection potential in Mayfield's game since he is just 28 years old, there's a chance he has already peaked or could regress to the inconsistent form that saw him bounce around the league in 2022. With the core of the Super Bowl LV champions starting to age, taking another run at glory with Cousins could be the more practical bet.

Adding a star like Cousins could convince veteran Mike Evans to re-sign, giving the Bucs a loaded pass-catching group again. The NFC South remains the league's weakest division so adding Cousins could push Tampa Bay closer to 11 or 12 win territory, giving them a nice springboard to pursue a Super Bowl run out of the NFC.