Sunday's bad outing from Kirk Cousins couldn't have come at a worse time for the Las Vegas Raiders.
Not only did the Silver and Black drop their rivalry game to the San Francisco 49ers, 38-17, but Cousins was one of the big negatives from the contest. The veteran quarterback wasn't the only one to blame, but he is supposed to keep the Raiders in these games, not take them out of it.
With two tough defenses on the horizon and the trade deadline looming, Cousins' poor play has really painted the front office and coaching staff into a corner. It's hard to justify trading him away for cheap, because his value has certainly gone down, but it's also hard to justify playing him any longer now.
Kirk Cousins killed his trade value in Raiders' loss to 49ers
While one game should not dramatically change a player's value, with older players, it is a bit different. An aging quarterback like Cousins needs to constantly prove that he still has it, but when facing a true Super Bowl-level defense, he completely folded, throwing three interceptions.
It wasn't just the interceptions, though; it was the inability to get the ball where it needed to go against tight coverage. It was the inability to make deep throws and keep defenses honest or make them pay. And that is a significant issue.
Any team trading for a quarterback like Cousins thinks it can win a Super Bowl this season. But after watching Sunday's game, would any such team feel confident that Cousins is the guy to get the job done? Even though he's still worth something, his value had to have gone down.
The Raiders, at 4-5 and trying to build a winning culture, are in no business to trade their starting quarterback "just because." But Cousins' value peaked last week after a big game against the New York Jets, and it made sense to capitalize on that window and hand the reins to Fernando Mendoza.
Now, Cousins' value is surely lower, and it may not be worth it for Las Vegas to dish him. The trade deadline may prove to be just a week too late. The Raiders could have made out like bandits by dishing him for a Day 2 pick after Week 8, but that can't be on the table anymore.
Now, the team is left with a few options: continue playing Cousins, even though he proved to the team and fanbase in Week 9 that he isn't taking them to the playoffs, trade Cousins for less than he is probably still worth, or make the plunge and start Mendoza, which they don't seem keen on doing.
Las Vegas is in a predicament at QB with a tough schedule ahead
Let's operate under the assumption that Las Vegas will keep Cousins, partly because his value has gone down and a trade may not be worth it, but mainly because they were probably never going to trade him in the first place. What do the Raiders do at quarterback going forward?
Can they, in earnest, say that they are trying to win now and trot out the quarterback who has lost five of his last six, with the No. 1 pick waiting in the wings? Even though it hasn't been close to all Cousins' fault, he hasn't played well in three of the last five games, and he was very bad on Sunday.
Typically, when teams drop so many games in a short period, especially with a handful of them being blowouts, they make a big change. And that particularly comes at quarterback when a younger player is in the bullpen behind a veteran stopgap. Mendoza was the top pick; he's the face of the franchise.
But a tough stretch is coming up, with elite defenses like the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos on the docket in the next two weeks. Even the 5-4 Cleveland Browns have a good defense in the game after that. There is no soft landing point for Mendoza to come in.
Should that matter? No. But it does to a lot of folks, and it seems like it does to the organization.
The Raiders showed in Week 9 that they are probably not contending for the postseason, let alone a Super Bowl, so getting Mendoza reps should be a priority. If they wait for a perfect situation to insert him, it'll never come. And the future should probably be starting sooner rather than later in Las Vegas.
Cousins' bad game was a sign that the Silver and Black can do better under center. The problem is that he killed his trade value and ruined an easy out for the franchise to put the rookie in. With Cousins and Mendoza both likely still in the building past the deadline, major decisions loom.
It was a bad time to have a blow-up game, when things could have been so simple.
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