Inside The Vikings

Everything We Know About Kirk Cousins' Situation as Free Agency Opens

Cousins is going to test the waters, and a deal could happen quickly on Monday.

Will Ragatz

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It's finally free agency day in the NFL. And that means things could move quickly on the Kirk Cousins front.

The NFL's legal tampering window opens at 11 a.m. central time today. Deals can't officially be submitted to the league until the start of the new league year at 3 p.m. CT on Wednesday, but they can be agreed to in the meantime. This two-day period is supposedly when negotiations begin with pending free agents, but really, those conversations have been happening for a while (and they escalated at the combine). This is when formal offers will start to roll in.

Update: Cousins has signed a four-year deal with the Falcons.

Here's what we know about the Cousins situation, which might reach its conclusion later today.

Up to this point, the Vikings have had — at least, according to the rules — exclusive negotiating rights with Cousins. They have an offer on the table, but judging by the fact that no deal has gotten done yet, Cousins' camp is looking for more. So he's going to test the market, which the Vikings are OK with because it could help contextualize their offer. They've still been in contact with Cousins' representatives, but there's been no indication that they're budging on their terms.

All along, the Vikings have said publicly that they want Cousins back. You get the sense that head coach Kevin O'Connell truly wants that to be the outcome. But you also get the sense that GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah only wants Cousins back if it's on the Vikings' terms. The buzz has been that they're going to have their limits in terms of what they're willing to pay — and, perhaps more importantly, how much of it they're willing to guarantee.

The structure of the contract is key here. Cousins might want three fully-guaranteed years, which the Vikings are hesitant to give him. That's why an extension didn't get done last offseason. This probably isn't about the AAV of the deal — which is expected to be at least $40 million — as much as it is about the guarantees, though both are important. 

The Falcons are looming as the most obvious external suitor for Cousins; Atlanta makes sense for a variety of reasons. If they were to make an offer to Cousins' camp that is clearly better than what the Vikings have presented, this thing might get wrapped up quickly. Of course, Cousins' camp could try to leverage an offer from the Falcons or another team in the hopes of getting Minnesota to bump their offer.

If Cousins and the Vikings both stand their ground and a team like the Falcons comes in with a big-time offer, he'll probably be gone. But there's certainly still a chance that he remains with the Vikings, too. Maybe there isn't a better offer out there. Maybe Cousins or the Vikings change their mind and decide that they really want to stay together, so one or both sides budge a little bit. 

There are several possibilities still on the table, which should make for an exciting day.

Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

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