NFL Rumors: Rounding Up Buzz on Kirk Cousins, AJ McCarron and More

With the NBA trade deadline now a thing of the past, the control over mindshare reverts back to the NFL as its rumor mill starts to fire back up. 

Not that it needs much in the way of help. 

The NFL has a little bit of everything going for it right now. The free-agent pool has got more interesting with the addition of AJ McCarron. The draft process continues to approach the combine and beyond. There's even a big-name tight end apparently already turning down a notable extension. 

Sounds appetizing, right? Here's a review of the hottest rumors making the rounds right now for those who turned their attention away from the NFL for a moment.  

AJ McCarron 

Frank Victores/Associated Press

Cincinnati Bengals backup quarterback McCarron is free of the Cincinnati Bengals after emerging the victor from a grievance overseen by an arbitrator pertaining to his games accrued as a rookie. 

To cut a long story short, McCarron is an unrestricted free agent. And while he isn't Drew Brews or Kirk Cousins by any means, the brief glimpses of play when able to escape Andy Dalton's shadow clearly have the rumor mill at least interested. 

For instance, the Denver Broncos will have an interest, at least according to a report from Vic Lombardi of Altitude Sports Network, who spoke with Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio on PFT Live. 

Those Broncos, obviously, want to escape the quarterback purgatory that is Trevor Siemian and Brock Osweiler, two guys who couldn't complete 60 percent of their attempts in 2017 and combined for 17 touchdowns and 19 interceptions. 

The Minnesota Vikings may also be in play for McCarron if they don't retain starter Case Keenum, according to Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Head coach Mike Zimmer knows what McCarron can do after serving as defensive coordinator in Cincinnati. 

McCarron should have a hot market where he can start a bidding war of sorts, all because he made a few key throws in the playoffs back in 2015 while Dalton was hurt. The former Alabama product isn't the top guy by any means, but he'll remain one of the biggest names on the rumor mill until he puts ink to paper. 

Austin Seferian-Jenkins

Bill Kostroun/Associated Press

The mentioned big tight end was Austin Seferian-Jenkins, who apparently isn't buying what the New York Jets are selling. 

ASJ has turned his life around and is a big-play threat once again, showing up in 13 games and catching 50 passes for 357 yards and three touchdowns this past season. It doesn't sound like much, but it's the most he's scored since 2015 before a downward spiral and a recent resurgence. 

According to SNY's Ralph Vacchiano, ASJ has already shunned the Jets on an initial offer: "He already turned down a two-year, $8 million deal that was short on guarantees and total value. Chances are the two sides will talk again and work something out." 

It's interesting, though, because the 2014 second-round pick could view the Jets as an issue as they head into an offseason where they have to hope they land a big-name free agent quarterback or draft one high in the first or second round. 

Look at it this way—ASJ is a 25-year-old player who could parlay a prove-it deal over one or two years into a monster contract before he turns 30. But the Jets don't figure to have the offensive potency necessary to boost his numbers. 

If the Jets don't up the offer, another team is likely to pay up for a 6'5", 262-pound target who can help create mismatches. So while ASJ isn't the biggest name on the market per se, his trip to it isn't anything to overlook. 

Kirk Cousins

Mark Lennihan/Associated Press

McCarron is free of his grievance, and because of how the Bengals used a list (NFI) to stash a player, it could prompt plenty of future grievances filed against teams and the league. 

It could start with Kirk Cousins of the Washington Redskins. 

If the Redskins hit Cousins with a franchise tag, he could fight back with a grievance of his own, according to the Washington Post's Kimberley A. Martin.

It's a fair play by Cousins, who probably wouldn't mind playing under the tag for a third season in a row and making about a cool $34 million in the process—but the Redskins just pulled off the trade for Alex Smith, a guy they see as the starter of the future. 

According to Martin, this is the crux of the issue: "Cousins could argue that the organization is violating the terms of the collective bargaining agreement because the team has no intention of engaging in good-faith negotiations on a long-term deal, or having him play under the franchise tag amount of $34.5 million guaranteed in 2018."

On one hand, a tag would be the Redskins trying to make sure they get something for Cousins' departure and what in a normal circumstance might simply classify as smart business. On the other, a team wanting Cousins would have to cough up the salary north of $30 million in a trade on top of whatever the Redskins want in a trade, should a trade partner even emerge. 

What the Redskins don't see in Cousins, another team surely will. He'll be 30 years old in August, but a 64.3 completion percentage with 27 touchdowns and 13 interceptions is something a handful of teams contending and rebuilding alike would love to have. 

Even before the chance this gets messy emerged, Cousins was bound to be the biggest name on the market. There's no stopping that now. 

Stats courtesy of NFL.com.