What is Kirk Cousins worth?

[TheGreek1973]

For me there are two questions here. is there someone we would like next year in the draft say the 4th round again to be our backup QB? if yes then Allen will entertain offers for Cousins. Someone said a second. I don't buy that because you had Arizona giving that and a good CB. I think we only pull the trigger with a 1st pick. The Browns spend a 1st pick on Weeden, are you telling me they wouldn't spend that pick on Cousins if we played them last year and had Cousins as our backup? I think they would and there are several teams right now that have marginal QB play.

[brandymac27]

Cousins is clearly valuable. That being said, if we had the cap room and the other front office was full of morons, I'd flip him to Arizona for Larry Fitzgerald in a heartbeat.

What about working a deal with Philly? I heard somewhere (radio or TV) yesterday that Cousins would fit in well in Philly's offense, and they'll probably be making big changes (HC-obviously, but maybe QB too) in the OS.

[Gibbs Hog Heaven]

What about working a deal with Philly? I heard somewhere (radio or TV) yesterday that Cousins would fit in well in Philly's offense, and they'll probably be making big changes (HC-obviously, but maybe QB too) in the OS.

Would you really want the Captain to remain within the division Steve, having seen him out there in live action?

Hail.

[quettefan]

Kirk has been a good teammate from what I can tell. I would not take a trade as a given here. If I was Bruce, after the season I'd have a chat with Kirk to see if he's even open to the idea.


However, I like Kirk a lot, and wouldn't be upset if he chose to go play for another team as a starter.

Bruce Allen/Shanahan consulting with Cousins would be a class act on their part (something that I would actually expect to see with this regime as compared to the melee and disregard for players and team psyche that defined the Cerrato era).

[Skinsfan In NM]

Personally I would keep Cousins, yesterday just proved we can win with him if Griffin is injured. It's not like he is costing us a lot to keep on the roster.

[brandymac27]

Would you really want the Captain to remain within the division Steve, having seen him out there in live action?

Hail.

No, I really wouldn't Lucy Pearl. I'd actually rather keep him. BUT....what if Philly offered us a deal we absolutely couldn't refuse? I mean, yes Lucy Pearl, Cousins is a good QB, but we'd still have RGIII!

[darrelgreenie]

You really think Philly is gonna give up on Nick Foles to trade for Cousins? c'mon

[Gibbs Hog Heaven]

No, I really wouldn't Lucy Pearl. I'd actually rather keep him. BUT....what if Philly offered us a deal we absolutely couldn't refuse? I mean, yes Lucy Pearl, Cousins is a good QB, but we'd still have RGIII!

Your a ****** Bill.

Hail.

[brandymac27]

Your a ****** Bill.

Hail.

Thanks Edith!

[skins island connection]

No no and no.

Cousins is well worth holding onto. Trade him to the Eagles, and he knows the play calls, system and situational downs, that itself would be a disaster.

If anything Grossman is the guy to deal off; Cousins is young, he gets it, and we need a QUALITY back-up in the event RGIII goes down again, god forbid, and he's proven he can handle the offense, and thats what is needed; quality back-ups.

Look at other teams around the league who lose their starting QB and their season goes in the tank. We just put some gas in the car, enjoy the ride for awhile before you sell it...

[The Tris]

Considering RGIII has missed time in over 20% of our games this season, a good back up is a very valuable commodity for this team - not a "luxury" IMO.

Lets not forget one of the huge flaws during the Gibbs-Cerrato eras was our lack of depth.

And while Charlie Casserly's personal opinion right now is that he is worth X, I'm not so sure if that is grounded in reality off one game, especially considering the recent history (cough failure cough) of back ups from good offensive teams/schemes that are signed or traded for (Cassel, Kolb, Flynn).

If we really could get a high 2nd this year (and maybe even a second 2nd in 2014), I don't see why that would change next year. There are QB needy teams this year, sure, but there are always QB needy teams. I can accept the idea that a high second rounder might be his peak value, but I also don't see that appreciably changing absent massive regression/zero development and/or a never before seen shift in the demand in QBs.

Cousins will only grow in value as he develops, so lets get another back up in the pipeline this offseason before we go trading away the only thing between us and Rex potentially starting a must win game late in the season.

That said, if we get blown away by an offer, you absolutely take it. But my opinion would be that a 2nd round draft pick* is not worth more than a high end backup QB, at least until you have a long term plan C behind that backup.


*a 2nd round pick aka a player with a 50/50 chance of being a multi-year "average" starter - if you are expecting a pro bowler out of the 2nd round, those odds drop to around 10%.




I think skins fans tend to fetishize the draft, simply because our lack of attention to it (mostly by Joe Gibbs) was/is an easy (and true) scapegoat for our failures during the 2000s. Prioritizing the draft and stockpiling picks is extremely important, and the failure to do so was a real source of our millennial troubles of age, injuries, and depth.

However, this fetish sometimes goes a little too far in that we tend to constantly defer to the two-in-the-bush expectations that a pick will more often than not materialize into a hole filling player, when it is actually usually more likely than not he won't. The draft must always be viewed as educated gambling, where even the best players (Belichick, Newsome, Colbert, Shanny) sometimes bust due to the many variables that no one can completely control.

Cousins is a very, very important bird we have in hand, and should only be moved based on an overwhelming offer, or when he becomes less valuable to us because we have another stable, young backup developing in the roster.

[Cpt Chaos]

It's hard to say. Considering how crucial he has been to our past two victories, it's hard to put a price tag on that--especially when you add in the fact that we are now at the top of the division. (HTTR) I would say nothing less than a 1st round pick, though even that may not be enough when he you consider that no draft pick is guaranteed to work out, and there is a lack of QB talent in this year's draft. My instincts say that we have two great QB's, and we should keep them both--for now--unless somebody makes an offer we can't refuse.

[Leonard Washington]

Since he's proven that he and to some extent RGIII are system QBs, probably not much. Maybe a desperate team would give a low 3rd, high 4th, or multiple 5ths.

[Momma There Goes That Man]

I go back and forth on this. He is a luxury to have on a team with some serious holes and positions needing an upgrade. Some of the most successful teams of the past decade did it without a quality backup. Brady(outside of Cassell), both Mannings, Big Ben, Phillip Rivers, Romo, Brees, Rodgers.

It seems that the top teams of the last several years all went at with their top QB and nobody really substantial backing them up. On the other hand, seeing what he did the last 2 weeks, it is such an invaluable asset to have.

I guess unless you get blown away you have to hold on to him. Teams will always be desperate for a QB.

---------- Post added December-17th-2012 at 10:00 AM ----------

Since he's proven that he and to some extent RGIII are system QBs, probably not much. Maybe a desperate team would give a low 3rd, high 4th, or multiple 5ths.

I'm not really sure what you mean by this. Every QB is a product of their system to a degree. We are fortunate enough to have terrific coaches who have taken advantage of each of our QBs skillsets and put gameplans in place to maxmimize their potential. I don't see how that drives value of either down.

[autoidiodyssey]

Absolutely Rex would have won that game yesterday. Anybody saying otherwise is being delusional. It was the Browns.

The Browns' offense essentially put up 14 points (the remaining 7 coming off great field position established by a Cousins interception). Grossman only failed to top that number 3 times last year, and that was without our dramatically improved offense this season.

Yeah, we're building a championship roster. That's why you don't keep a potential #2 draft pick (or higher - you make a compelling case that he could be worth more) stashed on your bench while the rest of your roster could be upgraded with players that can play all 16 games. We desperately need pass rushers, defensive backs, and to a lesser extent offensive linemen and pass catchers. A #2 draft pick is not a luxury we can afford to keep on the bench.

I think Rex could have pulled it out yesterday. But it would have been closer. You can't discount the points the Browns got off the INT. Considering Rex's history he probably would have turned it over more.

If we agree that the value will not change significantly over time the question becomes: Do you make the move now, in the building phase, or in two years when the team should be built?

Or we could just take a step back and enjoy the fact that, for the first time in a looooong time, we actually have some solid depth. We are starting to look like a legit organization for the first time in 20 years.