Despite choosing the Minnesota Vikings, free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins was offered the most money from the New York Jets, a cool $30 million per season.
Many predicted this would happen. It did.
The New York Jets offered free agent quarterback Kirk Cousins the most money and yet he turned them down for the Minnesota Vikings.
According to a new report from Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News, the Jets offered Cousins $30 million per campaign. If true, this would mean the franchise that plays in green offered the 29-year-old Michigan State product $2 million more per season than the franchise that plays in purple did ($6 million total spread over three seasons).
New York provided a Tuesday deadline to Cousins’ agent, Mike McCartney, so other free agents would get away (i.e. Teddy Bridgewater, Josh McCown). Where it gets tricky is that McCartney also represents McCown, making many feel that the agent’s entire goal here was to get McCown back with the Jets while placing Cousins in Minny, the spot he wanted to call home, all along.
“There are some folks on One Jets Drive who believe this was all designed to get McCown back as the Jets starter (for now),” Mehta writes. “Perhaps that’s sour grapes, but it is a real sentiment in the building.”
Perhaps the Jets could have dealt with the McCartney issue earlier. Sure, technically, it would be labeled tampering, but how do we know they didn’t attempt to deal with it to only have McCartney delay until free agency officially opened up, attempting to put both of his employers in each desired city?
In any event, Mike Maccagnan and the New York Jets need to be counting their lucky stars that Cousins didn’t choose the Big Apple.
Sure, the guy has talent and at just 29, has plenty of years left, but when recent history is closely evaluated, drafting and paying the young first-round quarterback only $5 million a season for the first four years always yields far greater championship results.
Players the Jets did pick up in free agency include cornerback Trumaine Johnson, linebacker Avery Williamson and the aforementioned Bridgewater.
