By not agreeing to a long-term deal, are the Washington Redskins betting against Kirk Cousins' success this fall?
Cousins will play on a one-year franchise tag of $19.95 million this fall. If he plays well, the Redskins might franchise tag him again for $23.94 million for 2017.
Cousins knows he can earn $44 million guaranteed during the next 18 months, so why bother signing a reported deal that offered only $24 million guaranteed? Cousins bet on himself. In a weird way, the Redskins bet against him, because if Cousins succeeds, they'll pay way more during two years than if they had committed now to a multi-year deal. The only way Washington benefits from a one-year tag is if Cousins plays poorly this fall.
