The Kirk Cousins saga has continued to dwell on during the offseason, despite him unexpectedly showing up for mandatory minicamp earlier in June.
Whilst Cousins has stated a desire to play as a starter in 2025 and beyond, there are increasingly fewer and fewer places that the former Minnesota Viking could walk into and take the starting role, besides perhaps the ever-dysfunctional Cleveland Browns.
Yet, Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report predicts that Cousins’ next destination could end up being somewhere else entirely, believing that the 4 x All-Pro could end up with the New York Jets if the AFC East franchise ends up dissatisfied with their investment in former 11th overall pick, Justin Fields.
“Since it’s impossible to speculate on injuries, though, let’s instead throw out a Jets team that has a considerable amount of salary-cap space and could well give up on Justin Fields by November.” Gagnon wrote on Wednesday, “The Jets also employ senior football advisor Rick Spielman, who is connected to Cousins from their shared time in Minnesota.
If the increasingly desperate Jets are competitive in spite of Fields at that stage, dealing for an established veteran from the NFC could make some sense.”
Kirk Cousins Could Replace Former AFC North Rival QB In New York
This would hardly be the ideal scenario for the Jets, who gave Fields a rather substantial two-year, $40 million deal earlier this offseason.
But even they will acknowledge that this deal is very much a gamble in and of itself, hoping that the former Bear will turn out closer to Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield, who have each received big paydays over the past two off-seasons after rejuvenating their respective QB careers with the Vikings and the Buccaneers.
Fields has not shown much – and certainly not on a consistent basis – with regard to his capabilities as a passer, and New York’s so-so offensive infrastructure will almost certainly result in a sink-or-swim scenario for the former Ohio State Buckeye.
What Would The Jets Need To Give Up In Exchange For Kirk Cousins?
If it is looking like Fields is sinking fast early on, bringing in a capable pair of hands to smooth over the ship – at what would likely be a fairly reasonable trade value – could be a good insurance move for the Jets, who are trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2010, when they made the AFC Championship game, spearheaded by quarterback, Mark Sanchez.
The Atlanta Falcons will likely not be desperate to part with the insurance of their own, but if quarterback, Michael Penix Jr. is excelling and Fields is on the verge of being benched, Cousins could make a serious request to leave – if the desirous feeling is mutual with New York.
And Atlanta would almost certainly have to eat some of Cousins’ hefty cap, but they would at least get him off their books post 2025.
New York Jets receive: Kirk Cousins, 2026 seventh round pick
Atlanta Falcons receive: 2026 fourth round pick.
