3 teams that could trade for Kirk Cousins in the 2021 offseason

San Francisco 49ers

Everyone should know by now that anything involving possible Kirk Cousins trade scenarios will always include the 49ers thanks to the connection the quarterback has with San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan.

Like the Patriots and Vikings, the 49ers were also left on the outside of the playoffs this past season. San Francisco just dealt with way too many impactful injuries to earn a spot in the postseason a year after representing the NFC in the Super Bowl.

This offseason, the 49ers will be making a decision about current starting quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo. He hasn’t lived up to the expectations that came with the contract he signed with San Francisco in 2018 and if the team decides to release him this year, they’ll free up more than $23 million in salary-cap space.

This would give the 49ers around $40 million in cap space for 2021 based on OverTheCap.com’s estimations, which would be enough for them to afford the cost of Cousins’ contract.

With San Francisco only having one season with a winning record during Shanahan’s four years with the franchise, the team’s head coach isn’t really in a position to draft and develop a young quarterback over the next few seasons. He needs to get the 49ers back on track quickly or else he might be out of a job.

So instead of a rookie passer, Shanahan could turn to an old friend of his in Cousins and see if the current Vikings signal-caller can help San Francisco get back to the playoffs in 2021.