BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — If the Jets want Kirk Cousins to be their next quarterback, one huge domino fell Tuesday night to clear the way.
The Redskins and Chiefs agreed to a trade that will send quarterback Alex Smith to Washington, according to multiple reports. ESPN reported the Chiefs received cornerback Kendall Fuller and a third-round pick in the draft.
That means Cousins will hit the free-agent market in March when the Jets are expected to be one of his suitors.
The main question for the Jets will be whether they would rather draft a quarterback to develop than pay big bucks to Cousins, who will be 30 in August. Then, they will have to decide how much they are willing to spend on Cousins, who will be the top prize in this year’s free-agent market.
If the Jets do pursue Cousins, they won’t be alone. The Broncos, Browns, Cardinals, Bills and Jaguars all could be in the market for a new quarterback. That could create a bidding war for Cousins, who threw for 4,093 yards and 27 touchdowns last year with 13 interceptions.
If the Jets don’t go after Cousins, his destination could still affect them. The Browns (picks 1 and 4) and the Broncos (pick 5) are both ahead of the Jets (pick 6) in the draft and are expected to be looking for a quarterback. If one of them signs Cousins, the Jets have less competition for the college quarterbacks.
The Smith trade was a stunner, coming just a few days before the Super Bowl. The trade will not be official until March 14 when the league year opens. The NFL Network reported the Redskins gave Smith a four-year, $94 million contract extension with $71 million guaranteed.
Earlier in the day and before the trade, Cousins raved about Jets new offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates in an interview with WFAN. Bates worked under Mike Shanahan with the Broncos and later Shanahan drafted Cousins for the Redskins. Both call a similar variation of the West Coast offense.
“They are great football minds and I’ve been very fortunate to have one good coach after the other,” Cousins said from radio row at the Super Bowl. “Jeremy Bates does come for that coaching tree, if you will.”
Cousins said he met Bates in 2012 when Bates was tutoring Jay Cutler as the Bears’ quarterback coach. Bates held the same position with the Jets last season, but is expected to be promoted to offensive coordinator after Todd Bowles let go offensive coordinator John Morton.
“I liked him then,” Cousins said. “He talked about football and that’s what matters to him. It was a smart hire by the Jets.”
Cousins has been in free-agency limbo the past two seasons with the Redskins franchise-tagging him a year at a time. After being tagged in 2016, he received $20 million. He received $25 million in 2017. If the Redskins were to tag him again, Cousins would have received $35 million in 2018. The Redskins seemed reluctant to commit to Cousins long-term and now they will part with him in March.
The Jets are expected to have about $100 million in salary-cap space and a desperate need for a franchise quarterback.
“It’s a tough market, but if I make it about the media, I’ve got bigger problems,” Cousins said of New York. “I like to think I have some experience dealing with a big media market.”