Kirk Cousins will become the first player in NFL history to play under the franchise tag in consecutive seasons.
Kirk Cousins will be the first player in National Football League history to play under the franchise tag in consecutive years, and that’s fine with him.
Cousins, of Holland, had until 4 p.m. Monday to sign a long-term contract with the Washington Redskins, and after the deadline passed, team president Bruce Allen reported on Twitter that the organization had offered him a deal on May 2 that guaranteed him $53 million.
ESPN.com reported Tuesday that Cousins told the Grant and Denny Show on 106.7 the Fan that the offer was fair. However, Cousins wanted to exercise patience before signing a long-term deal.
« There have been a lot of changes in our organization since the end of last season, » Cousins said during his radio appearance. « I want to allow time to help make this decision.
« I believe wisdom is never impatient, and so I think it’s smart to slow the process down, and to be patient and to allow things to play themselves out, to gather more information. I want to make the best decision I can. Being that in most NFL situations, this is the only year that’s promised to us anyways, I don’t feel a whole lot of extra security by having a long-term deal. So the one-year deal didn’t really scare me. »
Cousins, who starred at Holland Christian High School and Michigan State University, went on to explain he wasn’t offended by the comments Allen made on Twitter.
« I understand where he and the organization are coming from, » Cousins said. « In his position, you have to do that. You have to be clear with where the offer was and the fact that they did their part.
« It was a great starting point. … I think it was a fair offer. I respect and appreciate Bruce’s approach. He communicated with me that they were going to need to let the story be known, as to where they were coming from, and I said I totally understand that. »
