Written by Ryan Wilson at CBS Sports.com
By conventional measures, Kirk Cousins was decidedly run of the mill against the Seahawks on Sunday. For the season, his per-game averages are: 22.8 attempts, 33.5 completions, 268.4 passing yards, 8.0 yards per attempt, 1.6 touchdowns and 0.5 interceptions.
In Seattle, against the league’s sixth-rated pass defense, Cousins finished 21 of 31 for 247 yards (67.7 completion percentage, 8.0 yards per attempt) with no touchdowns or interceptions, but he lost a fumble and took a season-high six sacks. Looking at just the box score, it would be easy to imagine the Redskins losing handily. Partly because it’s incredibly difficult to win at CenturyLink Field, but also because Washington has been decimated by injuries, the running game remains nonexistent, and the team’s two leading receivers are running back Chris Thompson and tight end Vernon Davis.
A season ago, Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson each had more than 1,000 yards receiving, and both players signed elsewhere in the spring. One of the biggest issues facing the Redskins in the lead up to the 2017 season was replacing two of Cousins’ favorite targets. The team added quarterback-turned-receiver Terrelle Pryor and Brian Quick, formerly of the Rams. Pryor ranked 50th in total value last season with the Browns and Quick ranked 79th.
Not exactly a tit-for-tat swap, which explains why a running back and a tight end are Cousins’ favorite targets. But here’s the thing: Despite the injuries and dearth of playmakers, Cousins remains one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks. That was confirmed again on Sunday in his most underrated performance of the season.
During training camp, we wrote about Cousins again playing on the franchise tag — he’ll make $23.9 million this season, a year after earning $19.9 million — and why he deserves a long-term contract. He ranked third among all quarterbacks in 2016, according to Football Outsiders’ metrics (behind only Matt Ryan and Drew Brees and ahead of Dak Prescott), and through the first two months of 2017 he ranks 15th, two spots behind his counterpart on Sunday, Russell Wilson.
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