Vikings insider says Kirk Cousins won’t make ‘charity’ deal
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Kirk Cousins is likely to get another huge contract extension.
If Kirk Cousin stay with Minnesota Vikings in 2022, a discussion around a contract extension will have to open.
The 31-year-old veteran midfielder enters the final year of a two-year, $66 million contract extension in 2022 – a season in which he is expected to make the 45-year limit million dollars is fully guaranteed, the third highest of any quarterback in the league.
During his four years in Minnesota, Cousins’ biggest criticism was not his play but the price the Vikings paid for him.
Star Tribune reporter Andrew Krammer has revealed the chances for Cousins to extend his friendly contract with the team – and they’re not huge.
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‘He’s still not in the charity business’
Above Vikings Access podcast, Krammer and fellow beat reporter Ben Goessling discussed the upcoming season that could see Cousins traded or expanded.
The expected recruitment of Los Angeles Rams attack coordinator Kevin O’Connell led to several reports of the duo’s amiability after working together for a year in Washington.
“Here’s something you have to keep in mind: They’re bringing in (head coach) Kevin O’Connell,” Adam Schefter mentioned above ESPN’s coverage of the Pro Bowl, according to NESN. “Kevin O’Connell worked with Kirk Cousins in Washington. Kirk Cousins endorsed Kevin O’Connell for that job. One of the reasons Kevin wanted that job (Minnesota) was because of Kirk Cousins. There is a relationship. ”
Their relationship is not a new development. Cousins talked about O’Connell excitedly even in 2018.
“He seems to be going to check all the boxes of a head coach,” Cousins said in 2019, The Athletic. “He has a good relationship with the players, has command in case he speaks in a meeting, and most importantly is fluent in the Xs and Os. He is still quite young, so I am sure. I’m sure he could benefit from more experience, but the question is when not. ”
Does O’Connell enter the TCO Performance Center in Eagan, Minn., improving Cousins’ chances of staying on for a lower salary. Sure, but it’s not likely to come in the form of a restructuring but a contract extension.
Here is a snippet of Krammer and Goessling’s conversation from Vikings Access audio file:
Goessling: I think it’s likely that this means Cousins remains your full-back at least in the short term. Is Kirk Cousins Ready Here For Under $45 Million? I think there’s a chance it’s happening now that there’s a trainer that Kirk Cousins likes.
Krammer: I have some inside information that Kirk Cousins is still, as of February 2022, not in the charity business. That’s all I will say.
Goessling: It’s correct. That’s always the question.
Krammer: He’s still out of the charity business which means he’s still as savvy a businessman as he is in the NFL and a lad who has made a ton of money. If that number drops, in a way, I think that will be on the “books” in some (future) year.
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Cousin’s contract renewal won’t come cheap
Cousins is having the best two seasons of his career. And with midfielders currently playing at their peak at 35, his camp will assume his deal is no different from his previous contracts.
However, there was a way to at least reduce his hit counts over the next few seasons, ultimately pushing the can down the road.
Former NFL agent Joel Corry broke the finances on Cousins’ contract, and it is expected the Vikings could remove $20 million from the books in 2022 with a four-year extension.
Vikings will be able to freely free up the $20 million cap space in 2022 through the Cousins extension. One way that could be done would be to reduce Cousins’ base salary to a fully guaranteed $5 million while giving him a $50 million signing bonus on further renewals. 4 years. There will be $10 million in signing bonuses annually from 2022-26 along with $10 million in existing signing bonuses in 2022 related to 2020 renewals. Cousins’ 2022 cap will be dropped from $45,166,668 to $25,166,668 in the process.
That deal would remove the contract term of newly hired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah with the Vikings, eventually tying Cousins to general manager and potentially head coach once again.
However, after witnessing the fall of the last regime’s marriage to his cousin, Adofo-Mensah may not be ready to venture down that path.
https://heavy.com/sports/minnesota-vikings/kirk-cousins-nfl-news-rumors-contract/ Vikings insider says Kirk Cousins won’t make ‘charity’ deal
