Kirk Cousins started his NFL career behind Robert Griffin III for three seasons as the backup quarterback in Washington. He took over as the starter in 2015, the final year of his rookie contract, and he led the league in completion percentage as the then-Redskins improbably won the NFC East.
But the Washington front office clearly wanted to see him do it again before committing long-term, and Cousins was franchise-tagged at a cost of just under $20 million. In 2016, he performed well again (4,917 yards, 25 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, sixth in the league in QBR) on his way to earning his first Pro Bowl nod.
Washington and Cousins had another awkward offseason contract negotiation, highlighted by team executive Bruce Allen appearing to call Cousins "Kurt." A second franchise tag came for 2017, this time worth just shy of $24 million, and Cousins was clearly headed for a new team in unrestricted free agency in 2018. But there are certainly worse things than getting paid nearly $44 million fully guaranteed to play quarterback for a team that doesn't really want you.
Of course, Cousins then moved on to the Minnesota Vikings, signing a then-unprecedented fully guaranteed contract (three years, $84 million). A two-year extension from that deal netted him another $66 million fully guaranteed, before a final one-year extension worth another $35 million in fully guaranteed money.
The Vikings finally got off the contract carousel with Cousins in 2024, and you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who would say they aren't better off for it. He landed on his feet though, securing a four-year, $180 million deal from the Atlanta Falcons ($90 million guaranteed at signing). The Falcons then took Michael Penix with the eighth overall pick in the 2024 draft, putting Cousins' future into doubt.
Now, after Cousins' struggles last season, the Falcons are moving forward with Penix as their starter in 2025 and ideally a long time to come. Cousins would like to be elsewhere, but unless there's an injury to a starting quarterback somewhere, he'll just be a very highly-compensated backup in Atlanta this year and collect $100 million for two years in a Falcons' uniform before he likely moves on in 2026.
Former Minnesota Vikings QB Kirk Cousins lands in only Hall of Fame he's at all worthy of
Years ago, when he was still a Viking, Judd Zulgad of SKOR North appropriately called Cousins a "capitalist quarterback." With $294.1 million in career earnings, with a $10 million roster bonus and then some due to be collected from the Falcons before the 2026 season begins, that label fits Cousins like it fits no one else.
With that in mind, Cousins easily led off the "Bag Hall of Fame" put together by ESPN's Bill Barnwell.
"If you explained this concept to an NFL fan and asked them who they thought was worthy of induction, they would probably name Cousins first. About to become the most expensive backup quarterback in NFL history, Cousins has earned more than $294 million in his career and has another $37.5 million in guaranteed money coming from the Falcons before the 2026 season begins. He has been underrated as a reliable passer for most of his career, but it’s also fair to say he has never been the best quarterback in football, either."
"From 2016 to 2024, nobody took home more cash from NFL teams than Cousins, whose $291.3 million earned was $21 million ahead of the second-place passer."
"Cousins, currently the sixth-highest-paid player in league history, will finish this Falcons deal having earned more than $285 million from teams that signed him as an unrestricted free agent."
Over six years with the Vikings, with a 50-37-1 regular season record and two playoff appearances (a 1-2 postseason record) Cousins collected $185 million. As Barnwell noted, for now anyway, only three other players in NFL history have topped $100 million in earnings from teams that signed them as free agents, with Drew Brees the only one close to Cousins ($256 million from the New Orleans Saints).
Cousins will only ever be at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio as a visitor, or maybe as a guest of a former teammate who gets inducted in the future. But no one will ever truly touch him in the area of always "getting the bag", year after year for approaching a decade now with so little in the way of team results to otherwise show for it.
