Originally Posted by
dogfish
this is pretty much where i've been. . . thinking that cousins isn't a top ten type of QB, that he's more in that 12-15 range, and that he hasn't been able to elevate his team. . . however, when i took a closer look at the numbers, i think that's selling him a bit short. . .
he has been a starter for three years, and he finished in the top 10 in passing yards all three of them (7th, 3rd, 10th). . . he also finished in the top ten in yards per attempt all three years, and finished top ten for completion percentage all three as well (including being 1st in 2015). . . he was 7th in TD passes this year, and 12th and 13th the previous two years. . . TD-to-turnover ratio is the only area where he hasn't put up high end production, and he's still been rated in the top half of the league in that metric as well, despite not having much talent to work with in the receiving corps. . . pierre garcon (who is solid but certainly nothing special) was their leading receiver the past two years, and jamison crowder was their top guy this year with a measly 66 catches for 789 yards and 3 TDs. . . this year, he lost his offensive coordinator and his two best receivers, and still managed to be very productive. . . IMO, he's proven that he can play at a high level regardless of circumstances-- i think he belongs right beside the likes of philip rivers and matt ryan in the QB rankings, and that is good enough. . .
when considering team success, i didn't realize just how bad washington's defense has been. . . this year they were 21st in total defense and 27th in points per game. . . 2016 they were 28th in total D and 19th in PPG. . . 2015 they were 28th in total D, 16th in PPG. . . our defense should be better than that even if we do lose aqib. . .
i still don't think he's likely to take us to a super bowl. . . but it's not like i'm counting on baker mayfield or josh allen to get us there, either. . . knight's not wrong that a top price QB makes your roster composition tougher due to salary constraints, but that will ultimately rear its head with a draft and develop guy as well-- if they work out, you have to pay them. . . if we were going to win with the No Fly Zone while we had a QB on his rookie deal, paxton would have had to be the guy. . . that window of utter defensive dominance has passed, though, and we need to find a QB if we want to get back to being competitive on a year-to-year basis. . . i absolutely think cousins is good enough to be that guy. . .
for me, the real question is the cost. . . and a lot of that comes down to what kirk wants. . . he's already made a lot of money, and he seems like an extremely competitive guy-- is he simply looking to land the contract with the biggest number, or is he also taking the situation into account? and how badly does he want out of washington? i don't see any way you justify paying him 30+ million / year, but i think you have to seriously consider it if you could get him in the 25-27 range. . . personally, i still think drafting and developing is ultimately the best choice, but we're not going to have a chance to get darnold or rosen-- and we haven't exactly crushed it drafting quarterbacks. . . getting a look at mayfield and allen at the senior bowl will be big. . . it's gonna be a real interesting off-season, for sure. . .