The general money to be paid by the Vikings to quarterback Kirk Cousins has been known for two days: Three years, $84 million, fully guaranteed.
The actual contract has some other key terms. Per a source with knowledge of the deal, Cousins’ contract has a no-trade clause. The deal also includes a term that keeps the Vikings from using the transition tag in 2021.
The deal includes a $3 million signing bonus, annual workout bonuses of $500,000, and fully guaranteed base salaries of $22.5 million in 2018, $27.5 million in 2019, and $29.5 million in 2020.
The cash flow is $26 million through one year, $54 million through two years, and $84 million through three years. The cap numbers are $24 million, $29 million, and $31 million.
The $31 million cap number means that use of the franchise tag in 2021 would cost $44.64 million, given that Cousins would be entitled to a 44-percent increase over his 2020 cap number, if the franchise tag is applied. Which explains why the deal doesn’t prevent the franchise tag.
(The transition tag would have entailed a 20-percent raise over the 2020 cap number, which equates to $37.2 million on a one-year deal for a right of first refusal.)
The deal also includes up to $2 million in annual incentives, which could push the deal to being worth $90 million over three years. Which suggests that the Jets were offering a straight $90 million over three, and that Cousins simply wanted a chance to match that amount in Minnesota.
