In this series of four article, we will take a look at all the major rumors surrounding each position in the fantasy football world. We'll then correlate them with upcoming NFL free agency and draw a conclusion on what it all means.
Like everything football related, we start with the quarterback position.
Kirk Cousins, Washington Redskins
There's a whole heck of a lot to look at here. First off, it looks like Washington will place the franchise tag on Cousins before the March 1st deadline. This, despite rumors that some within the Redskins' brass don't view Cousins as the long-term solution no Cousins himself may not want to stick around for the long haul.
Even if he were franchised, it doesn't mean that Cousins would automatically return to the Redskins. There's a scenario in place that could send him to the San Francisco 49ers in a trade. Remember, San Francisco just hired former Cousins' offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan to be its new head coach. That could potentially play a major role in the outcome of this situation.
The backdrop here is real. Cousins could potentially find himself as the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL. This, coming off a two-year span that saw him throw for over 9,000 yards with 63 total touchdowns and 23 interceptions. Whew.
Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
Romo is all but certain to be gone from the Big D after Dak Prescott dominated to the tune of 29 total touchdowns and jsut four interceptions en route to leading Dallas to a 13-3 record in his rookie season. Set to count nearly $25 million against the cap in 2017, Romo will either be traded or released.
Romo has apparently hand-picked the Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans as teams he would like to join Unfortunately for the former Pro Bowler, Denver seems okay with staying in-house at its quarterback position. And while there are rumors floating about that Kansas City might decide to go after Romo as a replacement for Alex Smith, that seems a bit absurd. With Houston paying Brock Osweiler $72 million over the four years of the deal he signed last spring, that also seems to be an unrealistic option.
This leaves the Chicago Bears, Washington Redskins (should they lose Cousins), San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets as the most-viable landing spots for Romo. Outside of Washington, all four of these teams would likely lead to a downtick in fantasy production form what we saw in Romo's last full season in the NFL back in 2014.
Jimmy Garoppolo, New England Patriots
If Patriots are able to get a first-round pick or a combination of multiple high-round picks, they will likely move on from Garoppolo. Coming off a Super Bowl-winning 2016 season, Tom Brady has indicated he wants to play 2-3 more years. It's in this that trading Garoppolo for some value might make sense here.
Let's be clear, Garoppolo likely boasts the highest upside of any quarterback on this list. While starting New England's first two game so the season with Brady out due to suspension, this former second-round pick completed 68 percent of his passes with four touchdowns and zero interceptions. He's also learned behind Brady for the past three seasons.
The Chiefs, 49ers and Browns are said to be most interested in Garoppolo with Cleveland being considered the front runner. It's most definitely an interesting scenario to look at, especially from a dynasty aspect.
Garoppolo projects out to being a QB1 option, but his surrounding cast will surely play a role here, as will his coaching. From that standpoint, we would love to see Garoppolo work with either Hue Jackson in Cleveland or Kyle Shanahan in San Francisco.
Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo Bills
After a whole bunch of drama late last season following the firing of Rex Ryan, it now looks like Taylor might actually be back with the Bills. They are running out of time on whether to pick up his option for the 2017 season, a number that would guarantee him about $30 million over the duration of his contract.
Initially it looked like Buffalo might be moving on from Taylor, but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. And in reality, this might be best for both parties. Heck, it might be best for the fake football community.
In his two seasons as Buffalo's starter, Taylor has put up 47 total touchdowns compared to just 12 interceptions. He's also coming off a 2016 season that saw him finish as the eighth-best fantasy quarterback. With a new coaching staff and the likes of LeSean McCoy as well as Sammy Watkins in the mix, Buffalo might be the best spot for Taylor to continue being fantasy relevant. It sure beats the heck out of him attempting to reinvent himself with the Cleveland Browns.