Inside the Kirk Cousins deal
Later today, Kirk Cousins officially will say goodbye to Minnesota and hello to Atlanta.
He'll do so with a massive deal that includes two years of guaranteed pay.
Per a source with knowledge of the terms, here are the details:
1. Signing bonus: $50 million.
2. 2024 base salary: $12.5 million, fully guaranteed.
3. 2025 base salary: $27.5 million, fully guaranteed.
4. 2026 roster bonus: $10 million, guaranteed for injury at signing and fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2025 league year.
5. 2026 base salary: $35 million.
6. 2027 roster bonus: $10 million.
7. 2027 base salary: $35 million.
The deal also includes up to $2 million in annual incentives, based on playing time, wins, and a Super Bowl victory.
The contract pays out $90 million guaranteed, with another $10 million in practical guarantees. That's $100 million on a two-year deal. The Falcons could decide after two years to eat the $10 million and avoid the $35 million base salary. The final year is a team option, at $45 million.
The status of Cousins's Achilles tendon recovery and rehab looms over the contract. Presumably, the Falcons gathered sufficient information (even if they fractured a rule or two along the way) before making this offer.
It would be awkward, to say the least, if their doctors flunk him on his physical — like the Raiders did last year with Jimmy Garoppolo.
