The NFL's regular season is over, which for most teams, means it's time to start figuring out plans for the offseason.



NFL free agency is a huge part of the process, and along with the NFL Draft, it has everyone preparing for what should be a very active couple of months.

We've officially come up with our own contract projections for the NFL's top free agents that include context behind each player's 2023 season, the likelihood of a franchise tag, the projection itself, and the first-year cap hit.

So, without further ado, let's check out the projection for Minnesota Vikings quarterback, Kirk Cousins.

Kirk Cousins 2024 Contract Projection

Kirk Cousins isn’t generally thought of as a top-seven or so quarterback in the NFL. But with the sun setting on many of the former top-guys and relatively few younger signal-callers elevating to that consistent status it may not be that far-fetched. Cousinshas ranked in the top-7 of Pro Football Focus’ grading system for quarterbacks in each of the last three years. With 11,373 yards and 82 touchdowns despite suffering a season-ending injury in week eight, few quarterbacks in the NFL right now offer the consistent high-end play that Cousins does.

While Cousins doesn’t offer the out-of-structure wizardry of a Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes or Lamar Jackson he is one of the best system operators in the NFL and has shown himself to be very adept at running the Shanahan-style offense that has overtaken the league better than most.

Cousins has long eschewed long-term deals, instead favoring shorter pacts that allow him to maximize his APY as well as his guarantees.Coming off of a torn Achilles, whichever team ends up signing him will likely want to do the same. The $40 million APY represents the same mark that Matt Stafford recently signed up for with the LA Rams prior to the 2022 season. Without the Super Bowl ring that Stafford sported headed into his negotiations it will be unlikely that Cousins is able to get more than Stafford did despite the salary cap being $34 million higher.

This deal represents a $5 million bump in APY for Cousins over his 2023 contract extension with the Vikings but keeps his APY as a percent of the salary cap in the year signed in line at 16.5%.

Franchise Tag Likelihood: Low

2 yrs $80M, $40.0M APY, $55M fully GTD 

Year One Cap Hit: $28 million

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Be sure to check back in and around the site for more projections, as we will add more in the coming days and weeks.