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In the weeks leading up to the NFL free agency period, the Denver Broncos have been widely viewed as being a potential landing spot for Pro Bowl quarterback Kirk Cousins. The team possesses a glaring need under center along with a sizeable amount of salary cap space that could put them in serious contention to land Cousins.
However, there has been talk over the last few days that the 29-year-old could be leaning toward a pair of other suitors in the Minnesota Vikings and New York Jets as each is reportedly the only teams making a strong push to land him. According to Ian Rapoport of The NFL Network, if the Cousins were to choose to sign elsewhere, the Broncos could quickly shift their attention to AJ McCarron.
On @NFLNetwork, @RapSheet names AJ McCarron as a potential target for the Broncos if Cousins lands elsewhere. AJ knows coach Vance Joseph from Cincy.
— Marc Sessler (@MarcSessler) March 12, 2018
Once Cousins is off the market, McCarron figures to be the next most-pursued player at his position in free agency alongside Case Keenum. Depending on where he chooses to sign, the Arizona Cardinals could be in the fray for the former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback alongside from the Broncos, Jets, and Vikings.
Through his first three years in the league, McCarron hasn’t played much throwing for 920 yards while completing 64.7 percent of his passes for six touchdowns and two interceptions in 10 appearances. The vast majority of this came in his rookie season where played in only seven games with Andy Dalton injured. He also started in the Bengals’ 18-16 playoff loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he completed 23-of-41 passes for 212 yards, one touchdown, and an interception.
McCarron is expected to be in line for lucrative contract offers that will push possibly well north of a $16 million annual salary. The Broncos currently have around $29 million in salary cap space and could afford to present him a competitive deal to lure him. Ultimately, what this signals is that once Cousins makes his choice, it could be a domino effect for the rest of top available quarterbacks.
