“Would not be a surprising move” - NFL insider drops update on Kirk Cousins’ potentially getting traded to Browns

The Cleveland Browns are on the hunt for a new starting quarterback, and according to an NFL insider, they may want to make a deal with the Atlanta Falcons to get that player. Diana Russini says the Browns acquiring Kirk Cousins would make a lot of sense.

“I don’t know how far along it is right now. I just know there’s enough smoke around this and enough conversations being had that this would not be a surprising move,” Russini said on Tuesday.

For that to happen, Cousins would have to agree to waive his no-trade clause, which was part of his $180 million, four-year deal with the Falcons, which he signed in March 2024.

“Knowing Kevin Stefanski coached Kirk Cousins in Minnesota, it makes a lot of sense to know why that would work,” Russini added.

Before becoming the head coach of the Cleveland Browns, Stefanski was the quarterbacks coach and later offensive coordinator in Minnesota when Kirk Cousins was behind center. In his first full season as the team’s offensive coordinator, Cousins had a career-best passer rating of 107.4, and the Vikings finished with a record of 10-6 in 2019.

Cousins has been to the Pro Bowl four times in his NFL career and led the league in completion percentage in 2015 (69.8).

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Browns financial situation

Acquiring a player like Kirk Cousins may make sense given his relationship with the Browns' head coach, but it will not be cheap. He is set to make a base salary of $27.5 million in 2025. Cleveland does not have a lot of money to work with at the moment, especially after extending Myles Garrett’s contract for four years for $160 million, of which $123.5 million is guaranteed.

Per Spotrac, Cleveland currently has just over $17 million worth of cap space. That means there could be a lot of moving parts for Cousins to become a Brown. Restructuring Deshaun Watson's contract will save them $36 million in cap space this season.

Then there’s Denzel Ward, Jack Conklin and Greg Newsome, who are all making over $10 million at the moment. According to 24/7 Sports, the Browns front office may need to restructure some of those deals if Cousins is to become a Brown.

At the same time, Cleveland still holds the second overall pick, which is likely to be either Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders, and both would be the cheapest solutions.