Washington Redskins put franchise tag on quarterback Kirk Cousins

The Washington Redskins have placed the exclusive franchise tag on quarterback Kirk Cousins.

It marks the second season in a row Cousins has been assigned the tag by the Redskins.

The team has until July 15 to negotiate a long-term extension with Cousins. If no agreement is reached and Cousins signs the tender he will make $23.94m under the tag in 2017.

Last season, Cousins completed 406 passes for 4,917 yards with 25 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for a passer rating of 97.2.

The 28-year-old finished the year with single-season team records in attempts, completions and passing yards and matched his team record for 300-yard passing games (seven).

Cousins made $19.953m under the franchise tag but the Redskins have to raise the figure by 20 per cent for franchising the former Michigan State signal-caller for a second consecutive season.

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Because the Redskins applied the exclusive rights tag, Cousins is prohibited from negotiating with other teams without Washington's permission.

The team could opt to trade him if they receive an attractive offer and Cousins is reported to have interest in reuniting with his former offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, who is the San Francisco 49ers head coach.

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