The agent for Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins took it as a positive sign that the team placed the exclusive franchise tag on his client, signaling a desire to keep him around.
Agent Mike McCartney hopes it leads to momentum. Indeed, the Redskins' chief negotiator, Eric Schaffer, met with McCartney at the Indianapolis scouting combine on Wednesday night.
One source said the Redskins' latest offer, first reported by the Washington Post and made earlier this offseason, stands at $20 million per year over five years. However, the source said the guarantees "were low," and the desire remains for any new deal to start at the tag number of approximately $24 million.
The Redskins' best offer last year was $16 million per season, with $24 million in guarantees. If Cousins plays under the tag this season, he will have made $43 million in guaranteed money.
Regardless, McCartney took the tag in a positive light. It also enables Washington to control Cousins' rights. The exclusive tag means only that the Redskins can negotiate with Cousins.
"The Redskins had let us know how much they value Kirk and how they see him as a franchise quarterback," McCartney told the NFL Network on Thursday. "I do think it was a question of whether they were going to put the exclusive tag or the nonexclusive tag on him. When they put the exclusive tag on him, they tried to send a message that, 'Hey, Kirk is our guy. We believe in him.' We took that the right way."
As with last year, the tag number has seemingly become the starting point in average salary per year. The Redskins could still trade Cousins, but that would require another team to not only surrender draft picks but also sign him to a lucrative contract.
San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan remains a big fan of Cousins, but there's no guarantee the 49ers would make that sort of deal.
"At the end of the day, they're the ones that placed the franchise tag on him," McCartney said. "A player, when his contract is up, looks forward to going to free agency to see what his value is on the open market. This is the second straight year that's been taken away from Kirk, so the Redskins did say something about, 'Hey, this guy is worth $24 million.'
"Kirk didn't ask for the franchise tag. I didn't ask for the franchise tag. Still, it's a heck of a commitment from the club, and we view it that way."
McCartney called Cousins' situation "unique." He played well in the final year of his rookie contract in 2015, throwing 29 touchdown passes to 11 interceptions, helping the Redskins win the NFC East. Last year, he threw 25 touchdowns and 12 interceptions but also had a franchise-record 4,917 yards.
It has led to Cousins being in a situation few players are in.
"From a leverage standpoint, it was unique for a quarterback to play his best football as his contract is expiring," McCartney said.
He also said there's no animosity with the Redskins and wants to keep it that way.
"The last thing I want as Kirk's partner in this [is] for him to go to work mad at his employer. At the end of the day, his employer is still paying him well," McCartney said. "Kirk isn't necessarily motivated by the same things many other players are, so I want him to enjoy work. And I take that very seriously, and I think Eric certainly takes that seriously from the club perspective."