Extend Cousins or ... ?

“It’s been transformational, I think, for my football career,” said Cousins. “For staying healthy, for having balance, for my marriage and for my relationship with my boys.”

He also found PIMP, a process longtime NFL coach Shane Day helped him refine in 2014.

During game weeks, after Cousins receives plays from the coaching staff each Wednesday, he pulls out a computation notebook filled with graph paper and draws each one.

He uses circles to signify the offensive linemen and thinks about the Protection. “Say the protection is 2-jet. OK, that means I’m in a lucky call. If I get an odd front, I’m going to sort. If I get an overload, I’ll Louie.”

He draws lines to indicate routes and thinks about the play’s Intent. “Why is (head coach Kevin O’Connell) calling the play? Well, Kevin is trying to get split safety. If we get single high, it’s not a great play, so I probably need to be looking at my outlet or my checkdown or move on to the next play. If we get split safety, now it’s, ‘Look for the home run.'”

He uses a “Q” to designate himself and thinks about Mechanics. “What’s my footwork? What’s my read? Is it a pure progression? Do I need to know if it’s man versus zone? Do I care if it’s single high or split safety? Do I care if they pressure?”

Reviewing his work, he considers potential Problems. “I try to think: What really kills this play?”

A game week can feature 100 plays. Does Cousins PIMP every one? “I mean, it’s probably unrealistic,” he says. “But I darn near try to.”

The system kept him streamlined and helped him find consistency in 2015, when he was named the NFL’s most-improved player by the Pro Football Writers of America. In 2016, playing under the franchise tag, he rolled with the same process — Tuesdays off, PIMP the plays — and earned his first Pro Bowl nod.

At that point, both he and Washington had decisions to make. Join up for the long term? Play on the franchise tag once more? The team offered a long-term deal, but Cousins “did not have peace” about it, according to his father, Don. “He would’ve stayed in Washington,” Don said. “He loved living there. He’s a history guy and loves the vibe of the whole city. But he wasn’t going to play and be undervalued.”

That offseason, Kyle Shanahan, who had been named the head coach for the San Francisco 49ers after stops in Cleveland and Atlanta, tried to trade the No. 2 pick in the 2017 draft for Cousins, according to Mike Shanahan. “He knew Kirk knew his system, and he knew the type of guy Kirk was,” Mike Shanahan said. “But (Washington) wouldn’t even return the phone call.”

Instead, Cousins played out the 2017 season under a second franchise tag, which all but assured he would enter the 2018 offseason as an unrestricted free agent. That ultimately led to Minnesota and a record-breaking three-year, $84 million guaranteed contract.