When The Athletic asked anonymous NBA players to name their favorite athletes outside of the league, most of the answers were rather unsurprising, with WNBA No. 1 overall pick Caitlin Clark, a few NFL players, and various soccer players being mentioned. But apparently, one NBA player is a big, big fan of new Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins.
Cousins, a fourth-round draft pick in 2012, exceeded expectations and became the Washington Redskins’ starting quarterback before leaving for a fully guaranteed $84 million contract with the Minnesota Vikings in the 2018 offseason. After six seasons (and a few contract extensions) in Minnesota and despite suffering a torn Achilles tendon last season, Kirk Cousins found a market for himself in free agency again, inking a four-year, $180 million ($100 million guaranteed) contract with the Falcons this offseason.
While more than a few of the anonymous NBA players chose Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson as their favorite player in The Athletic’s poll, one explained why Cousins is his favorite.
“When an NBA player named Cousins as his favorite current non-NBA athlete, the response elicited a dumbfounded ‘Why?’ from one writer from The Athletic,” the article reads. “The NBA player said: ‘Kirk Cousins because he gets paid and doesn’t have to win or don’t have to do anything and made $400 million off of one playoff win. Legend.’
Kirk Cousins NFL career earnings
After being selected by Washington with the 102nd selection in the 2012 NFL Draft, Kirk Cousins signed a four-year, $2.6 million contract that guaranteed him just $472,688. For most of his first three seasons in the league, he served as the backup for Robert Griffin III, but after RG3 sustained multiple injuries, including a concussion in the 2015 preseason, Cousins ascended to the role of starting quarterback.
In his first season as an NFL starter, Cousins led Washington to a 9-7 record while throwing for 4,166 yards, 29 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions while leading the league in completion percentage (69.8%). During the subsequent offseason, Washington placed the $19.95 million non-exclusive franchise tag on Cousins. The following season, Cousins nearly reached the 5,000-yard mark, which earned Cousins another franchise tag in the offseason. This time, the tag was worth $23.9 million.
In 2017, Cousins surpassed 4,000 yards again and threw 27 touchdowns in his third year as a starter, which would also be his final in Washington. After the season, Cousins, who started and lost one playoff game in Washington, signed a fully guaranteed three-year, $84 million deal to join the Minnesota Vikings.
Two years into his deal with the Vikings and just a few months after leading the Vikings to an NFC Wild Card overtime win over the New Orleans Saints, Cousins signed a two-year, $66 million extension. In 2022, Cousins signed another extension albeit a shorter one-year, $35 million deal to stay with the Vikings through the 2023 season.
Unfortunately for Cousins and Minnesota, the six-year pairing did not yield playoff success. While Cousins put up consistently strong numbers, the Vikings made two postseason appearances and won just that lone playoff game against New Orleans during Cousins’ tenure. To make matters worse, Cousins’ final season with the team was cut short after he suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon tear in an October game vs. the Green Bay Packers.
In total, not including his $180 million contract with Atlanta, Cousins has earned more than $230 million in NFL contracts during his career. Adding in the $100 million he is guaranteed as part of his Falcons contract would put him at $330 million, and he would still have a chance to exceed $400 million if he can earn most or the entirety of the deal.
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