There are several good quarterbacks in National Football League but few great ones.
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The 26-year-old was due to become an unrestricted free agent next month.
Jimmy Garoppolo of the San Francisco 49ers. But on Thursday, they agreed to a deal. San Francisco got in before some bigger names get paid this offseason and get their “biggest evah contract” headlines. The quarterback was in the final year of his rookie deal. The record for guaranteed money on a single deal is Andrew Luck’s $87 million, signed in June 2016.
Garoppolo is an interesting case study. His seven career starts have all resulted in victory.
The Philadelphia Eagles aren’t just celebrating their first championship since 1960, but also an abundance of talent at the position in franchise QB Carson Wentz and Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles.
San Francisco 49ers fans can exhale.
“Now … there are a ton of variables that decide, ‘Do we think we can win?’ But that will ultimately be what makes the decision”.
The reason that I’m bringing this up is that Cousins, who will still be associated with the Redskins until the free agent sweepstakes for him begins, could be impacted by this deal. Conspiracy theories about the Patriots’ true plans – a second-round pick was suspiciously low for a potential franchise quarterback – abounded online and there was a worry that somehow he’d get away.
For his part, Garoppolo mostly played coy when asked about contract negotiations, but he repeatedly referred to the Niners in an inclusive way on multiple occasions.
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But any team talking with Cousins is going to be in the same situation, so it seems realistic that the Garoppolo deal will be the starting point for any discussions between Cousins and his potential suitors. Among 45 quarterbacks with 100-plus drop backs, his 0.35 Passing NEP per drop back was the best (Tom Brady was second at 0.28 and the average among that group of quarterbacks was 0.04).
