Quarterback Kirk Cousins indicated Wednesday that contract talks between him and the Redskins will go down to the July 15 deadline for franchise-tagged players, per JP Finlay of CSN Mid-Atlantic. “Deadlines do deals,” said Cousins, who added that July 15 “will be a telling date, as it was last summer.” Cousins and the team weren’t able to find common ground then, leading him to play last season under the $19.95MM franchise tag. As of now, Cousins is set to make around $24MM as the Redskins’ franchise player in 2017, and that number will climb to $34MM-plus if the club tags him again next offseason. While astronomical, that figure wouldn’t necessarily scare off Washington, according to president Bruce Allen.
More from the NFC:
- The Eagles’ Jordan Matthews was a potential trade candidate earlier in the offseason, but he referred to those rumors as “fake news” and “alternative facts” on Tuesday, writes Zach Berman of Philly.com. “I don’t really care about that stuff, bro,” he continued. “I feel like it’s the NFL – everybody has a price. Those talks, they happen. It really doesn’t faze me in any way.” Regardless of whether the Eagles shopped Matthews, who’s now part of a much more accomplished receiving corps than he was last year in light of the acquisitions of Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith, he might not be long for Philadelphia. Matthews’ contract is set to expire after the season, and the Eagles haven’t yet made an effort to extend him. “I haven’t really talked to anybody about that,” said the 24-year-old Matthews, a three-year veteran who already has 225 catches and 19 touchdowns on his resume.
- Coming off the second major injury of his career, a torn Achilles, longtime 49ers starting inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman will have to compete with free agent signing Malcolm Smith and first-round pick Reuben Foster for snaps, according to head coach Kyle Shanahan (Twitter link via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle). Bowman, a three-time first-team All-Pro who has started in all 68 of his appearances since 2011, vowed Monday that he’ll relegate Smith and Foster to the bench (via Branch). “I won’t be on the sideline. I’m going to tell you that now,” declared Bowman, who revealed that he spoke with GM John Lynch regarding a recent trade rumor. “He mentioned that it was a rumor,” Bowman said of Lynch. “Things were misinterpreted. And I also heard about the guy who reported it who wanted some type of attention. … But the NFL knows what type of player I am. Injuries are part of the game. I’ve done everything I needed to get back to where I am today. I’m ahead of schedule. I don’t feel anything in my Achilles or my knee. And guys can see that out on the field.”
- Receiver Michael Floyd‘s deal with the Vikings features a $1.16MM base salary and per-game roster bonuses of up to $250K, tweets Ben Goessling of ESPN.com.