Redskins feel they upgraded at QB by moving on from Kirk Cousins

The Redskins made Kirk Cousins a rich man before letting him go in Free Agency and sign with Minnesota Vikings, but they still feel they upgraded at QB.

The Minnesota Vikings made their biggest splash in free agency this offseason by agreeing to a fully guaranteed contract for 3 years with quarterback Kirk Cousins after letting Case Keenum, Teddy Bridgewater, and Sam Bradford leave the team.

Cousins was let go from the Redskins after 6 seasons. He was a fourth-round draft pick by Washington in the 2012 NFL Draft out of Michigan State University as insurance for their first round pick that year, Robert Griffin III.

After injuries to RG3, Cousins stepped in and became the team’s starting quarterback and never let go of the job, starting 57 of the 62 games he played in and all 48 in the last three seasons.

Recently, Ian Rapoport revealed on Twitter that Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden “without a doubt” got better at QB now that they have Alex Smith as their signal caller instead of Kirk Cousins.

Here is his tweet revealing the conversation:

Asked #Redskins coach Jay Gruden if his team got better at the QB position. Says “without a doubt.” Then explains, not to compare Cousins to Smith, but based on Smith’s credentials, they definitely improved there, which is the goal.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 27, 2018

Smith proved himself well with the Kansas City Chiefs, but saying that he’s an upgrade over Cousins might be a matter of comparing apples to oranges. While both play quarterback, the two passers have distinct styles and attributes that make them stand out from the other, making it tough to say the Redskins improved “without a doubt”.

For example, Smith has the advantage when it comes to completion percentage in 2017 (67.5%) over Cousins (64.3%), but Cousins was asked to do more through the air, attempting 35 more passes during the regular season.

However, looking at 2017 alone might not be the best way to judge these quarterbacks. There are plenty of factors in comparing them, such as the Chiefs having a better offensive line and an established run game while the Redskins didn’t have that luxury last season.

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Over the course of their careers, the numbers point in the direction of Cousins. He leads Smith in completion percentage, yards per pass attempted, quarterback rating, and passing yards per game.

Of course, one massive factor when comparing these quarterbacks is their age. Alex Smith is 33 years old and has played 12 years in the NFL while Kirk Cousins is 29 after 6 NFL seasons. While quarterbacks are playing longer into their careers than ever, the Vikings ability to lock down a potential long-term answer at a position that has struggled to find consistency is a huge move by Minnesota and a great way to capitalize on the Redskins decision to move on from Cousins.

While Washington did ‘upgrade’ in some ways by bringing in an accurate passer saving salary cap space, odds are that the Redskins will miss Cousins’ ability to stretch the field and make big plays.

The biggest question of all is how these quarterbacks will play with their new teams. Smith is walking into a Redskins locker room that is less talented offensively than he had with the Kansas City while Kirk Cousins will have one of the top receiving duos in the NFL in Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs along with other weapons.

Next: 4 reasons to be excited about Kirk Cousins

Only time will tell how these moves pan out for Washington, Kansas City, and the Minnesota Vikings. However, the three franchises each have a bright future and are moving forward with quarterbacks they have total faith in heading into the 2018 NFL season.

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