In the last decade, without a doubt NFL contract received more discussion than that belonging to Kirk Cousins. After another disappointing season with the Minnesota Vikings, what is the situation with the Cousins contract? What is the impact of the agreement on the Vikings ‘salary cap and what are the Vikings’ options under the cousin agreement?
Kirk Cousins contract and bonus details
In 2020, Kirk Cousins signed a $ 66 million two-year contract extension with the Minnesota Vikings. Cousins was entering the final year of his original $ 84 million three-year contract with the Vikings.
In the last year of his original business, Cousins had $ 30 million in fully guaranteed earnings. Therefore, the contract presents itself as a three-year $ 96 million deal. Cousins converted that $ 30 million in salary into a signature bonus as part of the extension. $ 31 million in new money has been guaranteed, and another $ 35 million will be guaranteed on the third day of the 2021 league year.
The duration of the cousins’ contract is for another two years
When Cousins signed his two-year extension in 2020, he had another year left on his original contract. Thus, Kirk Cousins’ contract is set to last until the 2022 season. Currently, none of his 2022 salary is guaranteed. However, on the third day of the 2021 league year, all of that $ 35 million in salary will be guaranteed.
What impact does the Cousins agreement have on the Vikings’ salary cap?
The projected salary cap, according to Spotrac and Over The Cap for 2021, is $ 175 million. Vikings are expected to accumulate $ 4.5 million as of 2020, leaving them with a projection of $ 179.5 million in 2021. As of February 1, Vikings are estimated to be around $ 10-15 million above the limit in 2021.
Kirk Cousins ’contract is the largest number in the Vikings’ portfolio in 2021, at $ 31 million. Of these, $ 21 million is a fully guaranteed base salary and $ 10 million is due to the apportionment of your $ 30 million signing bonus.
Can Vikings beat Cousins’ contract this off-season?
Vikings are expected to make some difficult decisions in the coming weeks. They need to free up space for the limit, but they probably also believe they are about to challenge if the ball passes in their direction. They have a handful of players who can launch, extend or restructure. However, as it stands, his biggest obstacle is Kirk Cousins’ contract.
Could the Minnesota Vikings cut Kirk Cousins and his contract?
Releasing Kirk Cousins is not a financially viable way for Vikings to terminate their contract.
With Cousins receiving $ 30 million as a signing bonus, which was prorated at $ 10 million per year in 2020, 2021 and 2022. So if the Vikings cut Cousins in 2021, the $ 10 million owed in 2022 would accelerate to 2021 cap. That would leave $ 20 million in bonus prorated as dead money.
Related | 2021 NFL Free Agents: Top available in each position
However, with Cousins $ 21 million in guaranteed base salary, this will also remain at the limit in 2021. In total, Cousins would leave $ 41 million in dead money on the Vikings’ salary cap in 2021 if he were released.
Trading Kirk Cousins offers more flexibility when it comes to terminating the contract
While releasing Cousins at once is not financially viable for Vikings, a trade-off would be. As part of the exchange, the team that acquires Cousins would receive their $ 21 million in guaranteed salary. Therefore, in the event of an exchange, Vikings would be left with $ 20 million in dead money at their limit – a savings of $ 11 million.
Related | Pre-Senior Vikings Bowl 7 Rounds 2021 NFL Mock Draft
The team that is acquiring Cousins gets a reasonable deal in 2021, as Cousins will only book $ 21 million against its limit. However, in 2022, that limit went up again to $ 35 million. All of these $ 35 million will be fully guaranteed starting on the third day of the 2021 league year.
Could Vikings consider a restructuring or an extension of Kirk Cousins’ contract?
The Vikings have already fixed an issue with Kirk Cousins’ salary cap number with an extension of the contract. Doing so cost them an extra $ 66 million in cash and pushed concerns about the ceiling down further. However, with the expectation that the salary cap will increase over the next two years, Vikings may be willing to endure the long-term pain. However, Cousins has every advantage and has no reason to compromise an extension of the contract.
A restructuring is also an option, but the maximum number of Cousins in 2022 does not make it easy. Transferring any money from 2021 to 2022 will only inflate the already high $ 45 million figure. This makes it difficult for Vikings to do anything with the Cousins contract that doesn’t involve adding more years.
One option would be to add the duration of the contract in the form of zero years. Any signature bonuses that Vikings gave Cousins in 2021 would be prorated for up to five years. So if Vikings converted $ 15 million into a subscription bonus, they could prorate that money to $ 3 million a year for the next five years. This would potentially reduce Cousins’ salary cap by as much as $ 12 million in 2021.
If Vikings are going to stick with Cousins, adding empty years is a short-term solution. They may need to do another restructuring in 2022 to reduce what would be a $ 48 million limit reached in 2022. However, with up to three years of emptiness, they can extend that limit reached to 2023, 2024 and 2025.
Want more NFL news and analysis?
Be sure to follow us on Twitter (@ PFN365) to stay up to date with all the things about the NFL. Also, keep visiting Pro Football Network for NFL news and in-depth analysis of the 2020 season and beyond.