Kirk Cousins and Kyle Shanahan have been inseparable since it was revealed that the 49ers head coach was aiming to sign Cousins during the off-season of 2018, when the quarterback hit free agency. A mid-season trade for Jimmy Garoppolo and his five consecutive wins to close that year for San Francisco threw those plans into disarray. Cousins joined the Vikings on a lucrative full-warranty contract, and Garoppolo got a five-year deal from the 49ers.
Speculation about the Cousins-Shanahan reunion has been rampant ever since, resurfacing again ahead of this year’s Super Bowl, with the 49ers possibly looking for an below-center upgrade. ESPN’s Adam Schefter told Guy Haberman and John Middlekauff on the ‘Haberman and Middlekauff’ podcast despite internet rumors, he had never heard of any 49ers interest in Cousins.
“Yes, there was a Kirk Cousins call,” said Schefter. “And I think something could happen, but I haven’t heard of it, so I don’t know where that comes from.”
The question of whether Cousins offers the type of upgrade San Francisco below center is looking for is debatable. His number is better, but it is well worth wondering if it would be worth it to acquire any design capital or any player the 49ers would have to unload to get him.
However, a deal between Minnesota and San Francisco doesn’t even have to go that far. It just wouldn’t make sense either way.
For the Vikings, they got productive play from Cousins. He was good last year and certainly not the reason that they did not make it to the post season. Leaving him would probably be a definite step back. Not to mention trading before June 1 would bring in $ 20 million in dead money in 2021, and an additional $ 10 million in dead money the following year. That’s a lot of dead money to bring with them for a player they probably don’t want to trade.
Even a deal after June 1 wouldn’t come cheap for Minnesota. According to Over the Cap, they would carry $ 10 million in dead cap each of the next two seasons.
Which brings us to the 49ers, who withdrew from the Matthew Stafford negotiations before even making an official offer, as the price had inflated to a first round by the time the Lions got back to them, according to a report by Albert Breer in Sports Illustrated.
Suppose the Vikings want to relocate cousins because they think a first round pick would be worth the dead money. San Francisco would most likely not be willing to put their number 12 pick on the table for him in the same way it was for Stafford. And even if they were, his pet hit would likely exceed $ 30 million by 2022. That’s a high price to pay for what may be just a marginal upgrade.
Rumors of the 49ers’ interest in Cousins have always been vague, and given the full picture atop Schefter’s comments, it’s hard to imagine that any substantial talks have taken place or will take place between San Francisco and Minnesota.