Kirk Cousins gave up $6 million from the Jets but used their monster, $90 million offer to get more from the Vikings
- Kirk Cousins was one of the marquee signings of the NFL offseason, joining the Minnesota Vikings on a huge, fully guaranteed $84 million contract.
- In a documentary released on the Vikings website, Cousins revealed that he might not have gotten as much money from Minnesota had it not been for a competing offer from the New York Jets.
- The Jets were willing to give Cousins a $90 million deal, but after Minnesota upped their offer, he decided to join the Vikings rather than take the biggest deal on the table.
Kirk Cousins set a new high mark for quarterback contracts in the NFL when he signed his three-year, fully guaranteed deal worth $84 million with the Minnesota Vikings.
The fully-guaranteed contract set a new standard for top-tier quarterbacks, but it might not have been as valuable if Cousins and his camp hadn't had the help of a competing offer from the New York Jets worth even more money.
In a documentary covering Cousins' journey through free agency that was posted to the Vikings website, Cousins and his agent Mike McCartney revealed that Minnesota's original offer was for a three-year deal worth $25 million annually. Cousins then got an offer from the Jets worth $30 million a year, giving his camp an opportunity to raise his price to other teams.
At one point in the documentary, Cousins said that McCartney would look to get the Vikings offer "to a number that is competitive with the Jets' offer."
"The fact that we have the Jets' offer is huge," said Cousins. "Now it gives the other teams a reason to come up."
Cousins' plan worked. The Vikings raised their offer from $75 million to $84 million, still leaving his contract with Minnesota short of his offer from the Jets, but close enough that Cousins was apparently willing to take the $6 million pay cut in order to have the opportunity to win a Super Bowl this year.
You can watch a clip from the documentary below.
In the end, the situation worked out well for all involved. Cousins got himself a huge new contract, the Vikings brought in a quarterback that they believe can help them win a Super Bowl, and the Jets wound up with Sam Darnold and a surprising amount of quarterback depth that could wind up netting a high return on investment.
You can watch the entirety of Cousins' documentary here.