Cousins remains a long shot to secure a new contract with the Redskins prior to next week's July 17 deadline, ESPN's John Keim reports.
Cousins is currently scheduled to play a second straight year under Washington's franchise tag, which is slated to earn him $23.9 million in guaranteed money this season. Although his representatives and the Redskins have reportedly met at least twice since late March, the parties remain apart on how much guaranteed money Cousins' next contract should include. Without common ground on his annual salary either, there's little optimism Cousins' prolonged contract saga will suddenly be solved by next week. As a result, Cousins could be entering his final season with the Redskins, but the motivation of another big payday looming should once again drive him to prove his worth. In two seasons as a starter, Cousins has totaled a whopping 9,083 passing yards to go with 63 touchdowns (54 passing, nine rushing) versus 23 interceptions.