Vikings News: Kevin O'Connell, Kirk Cousins, Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen

Astronomical amount predicted for Kirk Cousins' salary in 2024

During his career in the NFL as a member of both the Vikings and the Washington Commanders, Kirk Cousins has added an extraordinary amount of money to his bank account.

Since he was drafted in 2012, Cousins has made more than $231 million in his career as an NFL quarterback, according to OverTheCap.com.

This offseason, the veteran signal-caller is expected to sign a new lucrative contract that will only add to his current career earnings. For the first time since 2018, Cousins is scheduled to become a free agent when the new league year begins in the second week of March.

Since he will be 36-years-old by Week 1 of the 2024 regular season and he's currently recovering from a torn Achilles, it's been difficult to predict how much money the Pro Bowl quarterback might be able to make in free agency this offseason.

Recently, ESPN's Bill Barnwell shared his projection for Cousins' next annual salary, and he has the quarterback signing a deal that will pay him a whopping $51 million per season.

To understand how insane of a projection this is, if the Minnesota quarterback were to get a new contract that paid him what Barnwell has predicted, he would be making more than Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen each year, based on average annual salary.

Perhaps the recent $30 million increase in the league's salary cap from 2023 to 2024 is a big reason behind Barnwell's projection. But if that is going to be Cousins' price tag this offseason, the Vikings re-signing him this year would be extremely unlikely.