Kirk Cousins‘ top two targets will both be free agents following the 2016 season, and ESPN.com’s John Keim writes that the Redskins quarterback will vicariously play a role in the duo’s future contracts.
Veteran wideouts Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson are both set to hit free agency following the season, and Cousins is focused on earning the pair as much money as possible.
“I said to guys in college that I would take great pride in them having NFL careers,” Cousins said, “and it’s a point of emphasis that I would get them the ball, help them play well enough as a college player and it would give them an opportunity to be noticed and play in the NFL. The same would be true now. I want to see them have great success in this league and have long careers and certainly as a quarterback, you have a role in that.”
For what it’s worth, both Garcon and Jackson are simply focused on their on-field production, as both veterans understand that that’s all they can control at this point.
“We can just give great effort and however they want to use us is how they use us,” Garcon said. “Kirk has to throw touchdowns and get passing yards and we have to get receiving yards. We can’t control the outcome of the contract, but we can control what goes on with us between the lines.”
“I’m just really keeping it real right here, keeping it real simple,” Jackson added. “I don’t want to put no extra pressure on anybody, on myself, on the team, nobody. I’m just here to work and be rewarded for whatever it is. Whatever that turns out to be at the end of the year, so be it.”
Let’s take a look at some more notes from the NFC…
- Cowboys cornerback Brandon Carr took a significant pay cut for 2016, with his salary dropping from $9.1MM to $4.25MM. However, the veteran understands that on-field production will lead to a future payday. “Get the ball, get this money,” Carr told Clarence E. Hill Jr. of the Star-Telegram. “Keep it simple. Get the ball, make some plays and you’ll see what happens when it’s all said and done.”
- Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson has taken a personal leave to deal with “personal matters,” reports Hill. There’s no timeline for when the coach will return to the team. “I don’t know. I don’t want to speculate on that,” said vice president Stephen Jones. “Wade has got to take care of himself. I know no one wants to be out here more than him.”
- Cardinals general manager Steve Keim had no issues extending 36-year-old Carson Palmer. In fact, the executive doesn’t want to imagine life without the talented quarterback. “That’s all I think about,” Keim said (via ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano). “That’s what keeps you up at night. I mean, if you think about it, what GM or coach doesn’t have their career attached to that position?…I was fortunate enough to get this job, and one of the first moves I made was to trade for Carson. And the rest is history. Three years, 10, 11 and 13 wins. And there’s no doubt he’s obviously the biggest impact.”
- With Palmer, Larry Fitzgerald, and Tyrann Mathieu recently earning extensions, Cardinals defensive tackle Calais Campbell is hoping his new contract is next on the organization’s agenda. “I hope so,” Campbell told ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss. “Just one of those things when it comes, I’m going to be very happy but you got to be patient and continue playing ball and whenever it comes I’m going to be ready for it.”