Why the Broncos are one of the favorites to land Kirk Cousins

DENVER — Enough with the games, Las Vegas says Kirk Cousins should end the nonsense and uncertainty and officially narrow down his list to three teams the moment free agency begins.

After Alex Smith was traded from the Kansas City Chiefs to the Washington Redskins—opening clear a path for Cousins to leave his former team—the Broncos’ biggest competitor in the chase for the high-prized quarterback vanished, at least according to the oddsmakers in Vegas.

After Washington landed Smith as their quarterback of the future, the Broncos became heavy favorites to land Cousins coming in at -150, per Bovada. The next-best odds were the New York Jets at a distant +300.

But then the odds shifted again when the Minnesota Vikings decided not to place a franchise tag on Case Keenum, making them a major player in the Cousins sweepstakes. The oddsmakers, according to Bovada, have the Broncos sitting as the third-most likely destination for Cousins at +400, behind the Jets at +300 and the heavy-favored Vikings at -230. Outside of those three teams, no one else is even close.

This isn’t by chance, either. No, far from it.

The last time John Elway courted the most sought-after free agent quarterback, he didn’t even have to break out the checkbook to sway him to come to Denver. Yes, Peyton Manning did end up receiving a massive contract, but that was negotiated after Elway successfully convinced him that Denver was the right choice.

Now, it is fully expected that Elway, and every other team pursuing the seventh-year QB, will break out the checkbook and give Cousins the same winning sales pitch he gave Manning some six years ago.

The day after Washington acquired Smith, when Elway was asked for his thoughts on the trade he told 9 News, grinning ear to ear, “Obviously that opens up opportunities for other people, so we’ll see what happens.”

Reading between the lines, that “opportunity” is Cousins and the “other people” are the Broncos. However, it’s not just No. 7 that’s on the recruiting trail for Cousins to the Broncos. In fact, Elway’s just the beginning.

Before the two teams met in Week 16, the praise coming out of Dove Valley surrounding Cousins couldn’t be any more complimentary.

One day, head coach Vance Joseph deemed Cousins “a special guy,” while the next day defensive coordinator Joe Woods said, “He carries that whole offense on his back.” Inside the locker room, the sentiment was the same as Chris Harris Jr. said, “Kirk Cousins is a great quarterback.”

Even with all of this, though, there has been one person who has gone above and beyond, unabashedly and outspokenly leading the full-court press in the pursuit of Cousins—none other than Super Bowl 50 MVP Von Miller.

“Kirk could take us over the edge,” Miller said on the Dan Patrick Show. “We need Kirk… We’d like Kirk.”

If, for some reason, you thought Von—not only the current face of the proud franchise but one of the most well-known faces of the entire NFL—minced his words to Dan Patrick, he once again made it clear that Kirk is his choice at quarterback.

“I like all the guys out there but if we could get Kirk that’d be great,” Miller told Mike Klis, when given a choice between Denver getting Cousins, Case Keenum or a rookie quarterback with the No. 5 overall pick. “But since you asked me the question I would like to have Kirk. I would rather have Kirk.”

With Denver seemingly set on Cousins, the ball will be in his court once free agency begins March 14. However, to add more fuel to the Cousins-to-Denver fire, Kirk told Klis he “would love it if Denver is interested” in him during free agency.

It appears Vegas was onto something.