The Las Vegas Raiders were confident in Kirk Cousins when they signed him in free agency, but even they couldn’t have predicted he’d be this good. He is currently tied for the NFL lead with 14 touchdown passes.
Cousins clearly still has some juice left in the tank, but the Raiders also have rookie No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza on the roster. He’s going to eventually be the starting quarterback, but it reamins to be seen if that’ll happen this season or next.
If the Raiders keep losing before the trade deadline and Cousins is playing well, he could have some value around the NFL. Former head coach Jon Gruden actually thinks that the veteran quarterback could get the Raiders a big return.
“If I’m Philadelphia, knowing Jalen Hurts is out for the year, if I’m the Vikings … I’m going to offer the Raiders a second-round draft choice,” Gruden said on the “Gruden Family Football Show.”
There are some major quarterback injuries around the NFL, and not every team has the luxury of having the No. 1 pick as their backup. The Raiders would prefer to hold off on starting Mendoza, but it’s hard to see them turning down a second-round pick for a 38-year-old stopgap quarterback.
Presented by @ChevyTrucks #ad #chevy #silverado
Should Raiders Cnsider Trading Cousins?
If Cousins gets traded, it has nothing to do with poor play. He has been one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL this season. He also seems to be in sync with head coach Klint Kubiak.
He’s not much of an athetle, which limits how much he can do, but he’s making plenty of big plays down the field. Now, if the Raiders aren’t in the mix for the playoffs, it doesn’t make sense to hold onto Cousins if teams are willing to give up a good asset. At the same time, if the Raiders win another game or two before the deadline, they may not want to shake things up, espeicaly since the team really loves and respects the veteran quarterback.
“He has a different base of knowledge that we can bounce ideas off of each other,” offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko said of Cousins. “Being around different ideas, different players. … He’s a guy that thrives on accountability. So, he wants to be pushed, he wants to be coached, and when other guys see a guy that’s been in this league that long, want to be coached, and is the first one to say, ‘I got to do this, I can make this throw or I got to step up’. And then when it’s successful, it’s we, it’s us, it’s together. That’s type of stuff that young guys should mimic.”
Aaron Donald Praises Cousins
The Raiders play the Los Angeles Rams in Week 7, which is another struggling team. They desperately need a win, but the Raiders won’t go down without a fight.
Defensive tackle Aaron Donald has been impressed with what he’s seen from Cousins this season.
“He looks good,” Donald said of Cousins, via Raiders.com. “He’s playing well. He has some little movement going on, but they’re playing well as a team. I think they’re doing a lot of good things so we just have to find our way to obviously execute.”
Jon Gruden Floats Idea of Raiders Making Blockbuster QB Trade