Column: Rosenfels wants to make Washington great again
Sage Rosenfels is a former 12-year NFL quarterback who writes, does radio, and podcasts about the NFL and college football.
I’m a fan of Kirk Cousins. How could I not be? As a career backup who was drafted in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft, I never quite made it to the top. I had a dozen starts and played for a long time, but never became "The Guy" in any organization. Kirk has made it to the next level. He is the Redskin's quarterback for 2016 and the team is trying to figure out if he's "The Guy" moving forward. From a business strategy standpoint, will Cousins be worth the investment if/when Washington gives him a long-term contract? My answer is an overwhelming YES!
Leadership is increasingly important in this world. There's a lot of problems out there, and we need to find the right people to fix those issues. Leaders need to devise a plan and execute. We look to them during times of anxiety and struggle, to calm and reassure us that things will be better in the future. In football, like the Beltway, the only way out of darkness is strong leadership. As someone who participated in athletics and now deals with the business community, strong leadership is the difference between winning and losing. EVERY TIME!
In the NFL, it’s all about the quarterback. It just is. Rarely does a team with a pivot outside the top 15 go very far in the playoffs. Although it's a team sport, no position weighs heavier on collective success than the man under center. In Washington, that player has been Cousins for the past two years. While it's his fifth NFL season, Cousins is still inexperienced when factoring his number of career starts. Other quarterbacks like Derek Carr and Dak Prescott have done unbelievable things right away, but not every player grows that quickly. Cousins was drafted to be a backup, so obviously it was assumed that he had some limitations. The consistent quality of his play has steadily improved, however, and that important growth comes at a good time for Dan Snyder’s football team.
Speaking of Snyder, many have questioned his leadership since buying the team in the late 1990s. I believe he's also improved along the way. He's finally pushed himself further away from the table and let his general manager and head coach take care of his team. Snyder isn’t a football guy, but acted like he was during his first decade or so of ownership. One important aspect of leadership is knowing what you're good at and letting others compliment your weaknesses.
Back to "Captain Kirk." Cousins is no doubt limited, and there are reasons he was a fourth-round pick. He’s got a strong arm but he’s not Aaron Rodgers. He moves well but isn’t Russell Wilson, either. He has confidence in himself, but he ain’t Tom Brady just yet. BUT, Cousins is very good at many things, just not spectacular at any particular one. Is he good enough to win a Super Bowl? Probably not ... yet. But he's most definitely a top-15 quarterback and his stock is rising.
Cousins is an executor. He’s a task manager. Don’t ask him for miracles, but he'll do his job correctly the majority of the time. If someone told me Cousins played quarterback for the Naval Academy, it would make a lot of sense. He’s a mix of smart, tough, accurate, detailed, consistent, competitive, and has a stronger arm than many realize. He’s just not a magician, which is fine by me.
Coaches and general managers work together to form a plan as to how they'll win a Super Bowl for their owners. That’s their job. They are always looking for the right mix of players and football philosophy to win. Every team has weaknesses, and it’s up to the coaching staff to create strategies and execute them based on players they DO have. Everyone in the organization is trying to create an amazing meal, but may only have only 70 percent of the ingredients they need. A key component in this process is that players - after taking the knowledge and game plan from their coaches - need to be executors. To hold up their end of the bargain, a player’s job is to physically accomplish precisely what the coaches have trained him to do. That can be the toughest aspect of football, especially from a quarterback’s standpoint, where there are so many responsibilities.
If you asked me to describe Cousins, I’d say his best quality IS his ability to execute. My concern with Cousins is when the designed play fails and the plan gets thrown off course, he'll occasionally try to fit a ball in tight coverage and make a bad decision. When the play and pocket break down, Cousins is at his worst. He's repeatedly thrown interceptions in the red zone or at inopportune times late in games. Those two aspects of the NFL are extremely important, as most games are decided by a touchdown or less. The fourth quarter, third down, and the red zone are why some quarterbacks are elite and the majority are average. Cousins showed me an important sign in his development on Sunday.
Washington led by just three points with two minutes left, facing a third-and-6 on the Vikings' 10-yard line. Cousins was a play or two away from putting the game away. At that very moment, as a player and fan, the anticipation of victory is intensely strong - "JUST ONE PLAY" screams through everyone’s minds. While a touchdown would have theoretically ended the game, simply increasing the lead to six points would force the Vikings - a team with a struggling offense - to march the length of the field against a solid Washington defense. Chances are that wasn’t going to happen.
As Cousins dropped back, he found nobody open on his first two reads. As the pocket broke down, Captain Kirk made his best play of the day. He took a sack. As most Washington fans probably yelled in anger, I said "smart play." Washington subsequently kicked a field goal and its defense stopped the Vikings on downs - while Sam Bradford’s offense was in field goal range.
Kirk Cousins is growing as a quarterback. He is steadily getting better with experience. Will he ever be in the elite group of Rodgers, Brady, Wilson, Brees, Roethlisberger, etc.? Probably not. But he's capable enough that with a talented team and the right coaching staff, he can win a Super Bowl. He will execute the plan in place and has enough physical/mental talent to do his part. As an organization, what more could you want?
Tom Brady
He is still really good despite the Patriots' loss to Seattle. Seattle is a top-notch defense and he played well. His ugly interception wasn’t a lack of arm strength, but rather the ball slipping out of his hand.
Dak Prescott
Are you surprised? I wrote about this a month ago. He’s really good.
Vikings, Steelers, Packers, Browns
Your ships are burning. If certain players jump off the boat, let them go. Focus on the guys who are fetching water to put out the fire.
NFL
If your ratings didn’t come back this week, you’ve got issues. No election. No baseball. No excuses.