Cousins: 'How you like me now' wasn't a message to Redskins GM

After Kirk Cousins took apart the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night, the quarterback embraced Washington Redskins general manager Scot McCloughan and yelled, "How you like me now?!"

Cousins is currently playing under the one-year franchise tag after McCloughan opted not to give him the level of long-term contract he desired, so it was easy to interpret the pivot's words as a shot at the team's apparent lack of faith in him.

However, Cousins said he wasn't communicating anything more than his excitement after an important win.

"No, there's nothing," Cousins said, according to John Keim of ESPN. "I was just excited coming off the field with emotion. I would prefer for that to happen with no cameras and no microphones. But I ran into him on the field where there were cameras and microphones. We're both competitors who want to win desperately and both feeling great in that moment.

"Scot has done a phenomenal job bringing in the right people ... that have made a big difference in the success of this team. A big reason we are where we are and part of the reason we enjoy being here is because of the team Scot assembled."

After his three-touchdown, 375-yard performance sent the Redskins to 6-3, many analysts are saying Cousins has more than earned a blockbuster deal.

"It's a positive thing they would say that, but at the same time, I know people are itching to say the opposite if I don't play well Thursday," Cousins said. "I'm always focused on the here and now."