Redskins Notes: Cousins, CBs, Garcon

What will it take for the Redskins to sign Kirk Cousins to a new deal in the next six days? Joel Corry of CBSSports.com, a former agent, took a stab at figuring out a fair deal. His whole breakdown is worth a read, but here are the basic parameters of his suggested contract: 

• Deal length: Five years
• Deal total: $130MM
• Yearly average: $26MM
• Guaranteed money: $84.25MM
• Fully guaranteed at signing: $61.75MM
• Signing bonus: $22.5MM

Such a deal would give Cousins serious financial security, but he would only be the league’s highest-paid player for a short period of time. The framework laid out here would be used as a baseline for Matthew Stafford‘s negotiations with the Lions, at which time he would become the NFL’s salary champ. In 2018, both players would probably be leapfrogged by both Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan.

The only way for Cousins to get to the top of the mountain and stay there for a significant period of time will be for him to play out the year and hope that the Redskins do not apply the franchise tag on him yet again. If that were to happen, then Cousins could be looking at a contract averaging $30MM per year with even greater guarantees than the deal proposed by Corry.

Here’s more out of D.C.:

• If the Redskins were to offer Cousins the Derek Carr deal, he wouldn’t accept it, Mike Florio of PFT writes. Carr’s deal gives him $40MM fully guaranteed at signing versus the $23.94MM that Cousins is currently slated to get in 2017. However, Carr had to make a six-year commitment in order to secure that sum. That’s not a tradeoff that Cousins would be willing to make, particularly if rumblings about him being unhappy in Washington are true.
• The Redskins could carry as few as five true cornerbacks since safety Will Blackmon can play corner if needed, Rich Tandler of CSNMidAtlantic.com writes. Josh Norman, Bashaud Breeland, Kendall Fuller, Quinton Dunbar, and Fabian Moreau are the only real locks to make the 53-man roster while Josh Holsey and Dashaun Phillips could be left to fight for one roster spot. The odds improve for Holsey and Phillips if Moreau, a third-round pick, begins the season on the PUP list. Moreau is still rehabbing from pec surgery and is not slated to take the field until August.
• Former Redskins receiver Pierre Garcon isn’t sure why the Redskins have been unwilling to commit to Cousins so far (link via SiriusXM). “He’s been doing it for a long time,” Garcon said. “He is the guy that’s helped us make those playoff runs and do a lot of things great for us. I don’t know why he’s not the long-term answer there.” When asked about the possibility that Cousins could eventually find his way to San Francisco and reunite with Garcon, the veteran receiver demurred.