Connecting the dots from a Kirk Cousins trade with the San Francisco 49ers and a reunion with Kyle Shanahan is one of the easier scenarios to put together for those who like to fall into such speculation this time of year. Actually, the rumors have been circulating for a while. This would assume the Niners were, of course, looking for someone to replace Jimmy Garoppolo.
It also assumes that the Minnesota Vikings are interested in moving on from Cousins at all.
The suspicion about this juicy angle got a lot of steam when it was widely reported that the Niners were one of the teams interested in acquiring Matthew Stafford. There were even some reports that the 49ers were about to make a deal. Sadly, Stafford is now heading to the Los Angeles Rams in the first of what may be several off-season NFL blockbusters
As Luke Braun brilliantly pointed out Monday, the Rams essentially had to say goodbye to a first round to get Stafford and pick up another first and third rounder for the Detroit Lions to relieve Jared Goff and his hefty contract. And when you keep in mind that first-round picks have been delayed to 2022 and 2023, plus the fact that the Rams should be a pretty good team for years to come, those firsts are more like second-tier picks.
Nonetheless, the Stafford trade helped establish the trade value for really good – but not elite – NFL quarterbacks. It’s the same bucket where reasonable minds can agree to place cousins. Some of his stats indicate he’s better than just “ very good, ” but his inability to carry a team a la upper-echelon quarterbacks suggests that those stats could be misleading to some extent. What? Misleading statistics? Never!
Importantly, the Stafford trade also confirmed the idea that San Francisco is, in fact, looking for a new quarterback. New coverage and speculation on this front continued this week – again linking Cousins to the Niners.
An example:
The plot keeps getting thicker, friends.
The easy thing for the Vikings to do this off-season, as I noted earlier, is to count on the healthy return of their injured defensive stars, address some special teams issues through free agency, and add some pieces to the design. Sure, some players may let it go or restructure for salary cap, but all in all, a conservative low season seems like the most likely way forward.
Easy. Back in the playoff hunt.
If the Vikings were to tear down everything and start a rebuild, the clues would already be clear – starting with a new head trainer. Mike Zimmer is still the captain of the ship and he is not in the mood for rebuilding. There is no hunger at Vikings headquarters for an overhaul, and they are not in a position to plunge into free duty given their pay cap. There are those who will try to convince you that the salary ceiling is a canard, that there is always a solution. That may be true to some extent. On the other hand, there are a number of other teams that don’t require pet gymnastics to throw this off-season money at free agents, giving them a definite advantage over low-money teams like the Vikings.
However, a dull and relatively quiet low season is not the only way forward. It’s probably Rick Spielman’s Plan A. But Plan B or C could come into play now that a market for cousins is established.
Let’s not forget that the new Denver Broncos general manager is George Paton, who was poached from the Vikings’ front office last month. The Broncos were also reportedly involved in Stafford’s trade withdrawals, so a quarterback upgrade is in the offing for them too. Those dots are just as easy to connect as the Cousins-to-the-49ers scenario. Spielman and Paton are buddies and could strike a deal in a relatively short period of time if both sides were willing.
Could a bidding war for cousins ensue?
That would change everything. Screw down the “boring offseason” plan. If you’re a Spielman and you have one or two teams seriously looking for a quarterback like Cousins, then at least you should cherish the idea of whether you were even considering moving away from him or not. In either scenario, San Francisco or Denver, Spielman could achieve a number of design choices. And we all know how much Rick likes to choose. Plus, the Vikings could free themselves from paralysis by Cousins’s massive contract, albeit market value.
Of course, this would be just one of the big dominoes. More would be needed if cousins were traded. Would Handsome Jimmy G become the Vikings’ quarterback for a rookie – someone they might be able to turn over some newly acquired design capital to move and acquire in the first round?
Or could the delicious, creamy nougat at the center of the Vikings’ off-season become a tasty trade that Deshaun Watson brings to Minnesota?
Suffice it to say that if Spielman moves on from what I consider to be a conservative off-season Plan A to one that moves Cousins, things at Vikings headquarters will be a little less “boring”. Indeed, it would be the exact opposite.
Now let’s issue a Trade Watch, not a Trade Warning. The terms of a Cousins deal are more favorable than a few weeks ago. To be safe, Viking fans should make sure that their backs and tray tables are fully upright and their seat belts are properly secured. Things can (keyword: can) start quickly.