April Fool’s Day was yesterday, right?

Apparently not.

Kirk Cousins and his agent, Mike McCartney, have successfully fleeced another NFL organization. It wasn’t the New York Jets, to the delight of the green-and-white faithful, but his new contract still has implications for the franchise based in Florham Park.

Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Cousins is signing with the Las Vegas Raiders on a five-year, $172 million deal. Based on its structure, it is actually a one-year, fully-guaranteed $20 million deal with a club option for two years at $80 million.

The Raiders will pay Cousins $1.3 million this season, plus a fully-guaranteed $10 million roster bonus on the third day of the 2027 league year. Cousins’ former team, the Atlanta Falcons, will pay Cousins $8.7 million this season.

It marks the 11th straight year that Cousins will have a fully guaranteed salary.

So, what does this mean for the Jets?

Well, it means they made the right move on the veteran quarterback market this offseason.

The Jets nabbed Geno Smith as their veteran, bridge starter for just one year and $3.3 million. It’s a substantial bargain compared to Cousins, despite the fact that they’re similar players at this stage of their careers.

Here is a comparison of Smith and Cousins’ numbers over the past two seasons (2024-25):

  • Geno Smith: 32 games, 69.1% completion rate, 7,345 yards (229.5/G, 7.2/attempt), 40 TD, 32 INT, 89.5 passer rating, 381 rush yards, 2 rush TD, 13 fumbles (1 lost)
  • Kirk Cousins: 24 games, 65.0% completion rate, 5,229 yards (217.9/G, 7.2/attempt), 28 TD, 21 INT, 87.2 passer rating, 7 rush yards, 1 rush TD, 16 fumbles (3 lost)

Smith is 35 years old. Cousins is two years older and has clearly not been the same player since his Achilles injury with the Vikings in 2023.

Yet, despite posting similar numbers over the past two years, Smith is making a fraction of Cousins’ salary.

For a Jets team that didn’t have much of a choice but to settle for a bridge starter in the veteran quarterback market this season, they made the right move by opting for an affordable option in Smith instead of chasing a bigger name like Cousins. They are poised to get much better bang for their buck than the Raiders.