Expectations & timeline for achieving them?

Here's a generic how that works: signing bonuses are a lump of cash paid once and the the salary cap hit is spread over the life of the contract.  It is generally allowable for teams to convert base salary - guaranteed or non-guaranteed.  In the case of non-guaranteed salary, it effectively fully guarantees the money (very positive for the player); in the case of guaranteed money, it is all paid out immediately on the bonus check instead of in game checks (slightly positive for the player). 

Roster Bonuses are basically a decision point for the team - we pay this and you're paid or we don't pay this and you're cut.  Both roster bonuses and Signing bonuses are paid in a lump sum to the player; the difference is salary cap.  Roster bonus hits the cap all in the year it paid, signing bonus is prorated over the life of the contract.  A generic conversion could look like this:



Cousins contract is structured such that one of two things will happen: The Vikings will add 2-3 more years OR they replace him (draft or free agent) and he is either a lame duck (likely of they draft a QB) or they work with Cousins to find a situation where he is willing to waive his no trade clause.

Cousins Specifically has a $20M Roster bonus in 2023 - likely there to allow both sides to get what they want:
- Cousins will know what his situation is with the Vikings as soon as that is paid.  Once a bonus is paid, all the financial benefit to trading or cutting a player disappears as all the cap hit stays with the team that paid it
- If Cousins does well, and the Vikings do tack on 2-3 more years, they have that lump sum to convert to a signing bonus to reduce his 2023 cap hit.  

That comparison might look like this:

Correct.  Cousins $30M guaranteed next year is broken up $20M roster bonus (this can be converted exactly as Hunter's was and is the thing that will force any decision to be early in the offseason, same as with Hunter) + a $10M base salary (which, compared to the roster bonus is kind of small potatoes).  

There is one big difference between Hunter in 2022 and Cousins in 2023: that is Hunter was/is under contract for two more years through 2022 and 2023.  So with Hunter they could just pay the bonus and still have all of next offseason to add an extension.  The Vikings basically punted a decision on hunter from 2022 to 2023.  They won't have that luxury with Cousins, so the decision on Cousins' bonus will have much more long term impacts.  

Kirk will most likely be the starting QB in 2023 for the reasons you mentioned, though I wouldn't rule out a trade that involves the receiving team giving him an extension, thus giving him a reason to waive the no-trade clause - or he may waive it if the trading team is a decent enough team. A no trade clause is mostly a deterrent from getting traded to a bad team.

Don't we still take a big cap hit if he waives the NTC and we trade him? From my understanding at the time, there would be no realistic scenario to trade him even if he waived the NTC, and that I had to come to terms with it xD.

It's a $18.75M hit, which is substantial but not as big as the Wentz/Goff/Ryan cap hits via trade - and only a $6.25M hit if traded after June 1st. It definitely would diminish the odds of the Vikings wanting to move him, but I'd say it's still in the realm of possibility.

We're definitely trading him after he leads us to a Super Bowl win, duh. Because there's no way we're repeating with checkdown charlie, which is the ultimate goal. #ChampionshipMindset

We're definitely trading him after he leads us to a Super Bowl win, duh. Because there's no way we're repeating with checkdown charlie, which is the ultimate goal. #ChampionshipMindset