There’s a lot of negativity among players about how they feel regarding the franchise tag, but not everyone feels that way.<\/p>\n
The narrative is that if players play on the franchise tag, they’re getting screwed over by the team, and are missing out on a big payday, as they could potentially get injured that season — costing them down the line. However, it’s money in their pocket, and that’s a better position to be in than what Le’Veon Bell did in 2018.<\/p>\n
And as far as the “lost money” narrative, that’s not always the case, as it’s worked out for some guys. Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins is the perfect example. He played under the franchise tag — twice, actually — in 2016 and 2017. Cousins then signed a massive three-year, $84 million contract (all of it guaranteed) with the Vikings.<\/p>\n
So given that Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was currently hit with the franchise tag, Cousins shared some words of optimism for his counterpart, during an appearance on “SportsCenter.”<\/p>\n
\u201cAnybody who I run into who\u2019s been franchise tagged, we have one on our team this year in\u00a0Anthony Harris, I believe the franchise tag\u00a0can be your friend,\u201d Cousins said<\/a>, as transcribed by Pro Football Talk. \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s something to be disappointed with. I think it enables you to be well compensated, and deservedly so, for the upcoming season. Then, I always say the cream will rise to the top. If you\u2019re good enough, the cream\u2019s going to rise to the top, and you\u2019re going to get compensated the way you want to. Sometimes it doesn\u2019t happen as quickly as you would like, but if you deserve it, and you\u2019ve earned it, it\u2019s going to happen. So you\u2019ve just got to stay the course and stay patient. Certainly in my journey, it all worked out. I wouldn\u2019t go back and change a thing.<\/p>\n \u201cSo my message to Dak, when I saw him midseason last year, was, \u2018Hey, whatever happens, don\u2019t be afraid of the tag. It can be your friend, and you can use it to your advantage.’\u201d<\/p>\n