Sunday 11 March 2018 15:37, UK
As the beginning of free agency draws closer, some of the NFL’s top players are stepping up their public recruitment of coveted quarterback Kirk Cousins.
Cousins, formerly of the Washington Redskins, will be eligible to sign with a new team from 9pm GMT on March 14.
The Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings, Arizona Cardinals and the New York Jets are expected to lead the race to sign the most talented quarterback to hit the open market since Peyton Manning was released by the Indianapolis Colts in March 2012.
Broncos general manager John Elway proved what a good recruiter he is when he successfully lured Manning to Denver six years ago, but this time around he is getting a helping hand from Denver's perennial All-Pro pass rusher Von Miller.
"I'm all in 100 per cent," Miller told NFL.com. "This is a big time for Denver and a big time for the National Football League. You don't really have, especially quarterbacks become free like that. So it's an exciting time in the National Football League.
"It's kind of like college again. You got an athlete coming to your school and you want to try your best to get them there. And that's the same thing with us.
"We would really like to have Kirk. I think him and his personality and the things that he brings to the table fits in with Denver.
"But there are a lot of great teams out there with large pocket books. So we'll have to just wait and see. But I'll have to give him the ultimate spiel on why Denver is special to me."
The Broncos traded Pro Bowl cornerback Aqib Talib, who is due to make $11m this season and $8m next season, to the Los Angeles Rams earlier this week, leaving them with about $34m in cap space to pursue Cousins and other free agents.
But they will face stiff competition to land him and Cardinals stars Larry Fitzgerald and David Johnson have also publicly lobbied this week for Cousins to come and join them in Arizona.
They join their team-mate, All-Pro cornerback Patrick Peterson, in recruiting Cousins.
Peterson told ESPN last month: "I believe Kirk can definitely get us over the top. He'll be in warm weather, playing on one of the best turfs in the NFL, [he'll] have some great talent around him - running game, wide receivers, tight ends, you name it. We have everything he needs to be successful."
The Cardinals currently have about $20m in cap space, which is significantly less than the Broncos, Vikings (around $48m) and the Jets (around $92m).
Arizona would need to make moves to sign Cousins, with tackle Jared Veldheer, guard Mike Iupati, safety Tyrann Mathieu and running back Adrian Peterson all candidates for release or restructure.
