Another NFL insider connects Broncos to unthinkable QB move

It's hard to know exactly what to believe around this time of year, especially as it relates to free agency or the NFL Draft. There will always be misdirection coming from agents, teams, and players in order to drive the market, but there are also times when you can say, "Where there's smoke, there's fire." Could that be the case with the unthinkable idea of the Denver Broncos signing Kirk Cousins in NFL free agency?

The first time this idea came up in terms of a national reporter saying something was a handful of days ago when NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero said something. Pelissero didn't exactly come out and say that the Broncos are going to prioritize Cousins in free agency, but he said it's not something you should rule out.

"I would think that they're going to look at all these free agent quarterbacks. I wouldn't even rule out the possibility that the Broncos would make a run at Kirk Cousins. It'll depend on the number, and you can certainly look at the numbers on paper and say, 'How in the world are they gonna get this done? They owe Russell Wilson $39 million whether he's on the team or not...'

They're gonna be aggressive...If he believes Kirk Cousins gives them the best chance to compete...I wouldn't take anything off the table."

Tom Pelissero

Pelissero is extremely well-connected around the NFL, but he's based in Minneapolis and has a longstanding relationship with Broncos GM George Paton. When Pelissero speaks regarding the Denver Broncos, it's worth listening to.

And on top of Pelissero's comments now, you have Dianna Russini of The Athletic making connections between the Broncos and Cousins.

Hold on a moment...Minnesota may have to fend off the Broncos for Kirk Cousins?

It's comments like this that certainly make you raise your eyebrows a little bit. In all reality, Kirk Cousins could be an ideal pickup for the Denver Broncos depending on how he's willing to structure a contract.

I had a tinfoil hat type of theory earlier this offseason that Cousins could pull off something semi-related to what we saw Shohei Ohtani do with the Los Angeles Dodgers this winter where he essentially accepted a record-setting deal that he won't be paid for almost 10 years. He made that deal to help the Dodgers surround him on the roster.

Kirk Cousins has gone on record as saying that he's been very blessed financially, and that the overall number on a new deal doesn't matter as much to him this time around as the structure. You get the impression that Kirk is going to want to go to the right situation to win moving forward, and perhaps any rumors about the Broncos or Falcons having interest are just to drive up his price with the Vikings.

But it wouldn't be surprising at all if Sean Payton figured out a way to make it happen. If he's motivated to bring a guy in, the Broncos will figure out a way. Of course, it takes two to tango. The Broncos can't just throw a blank check at Kirk Cousins and bring him in. They would need to structure a deal in such a way to facilitate whatever the Russell Wilson salary cap ramifications are. We could see the Broncos absorb the full $85 million this year or they could split the dead money between 2024 and 2025. We may be able to glean some clues about the Broncos' plans at quarterback based on how they decide to do that.

At this stage, it doesn't really feel like many Broncos fans have wrapped their minds around the idea of Kirk Cousins coming to Denver. Some just don't like the idea of another short-term veteran option. Others don't like that he's coming off of injury. Others don't deem the price realistic. Most fans in Broncos Counttry have probably just written this move off as unrealistic, but you never know.