Analysts link AFC North team to Vikings QB Kirk Cousins

NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated wrote on Monday that the 4-2 Cleveland Browns "are a quarterback away from being contenders" amid questions hovering over the status of starter Deshaun Watson. 

Former NFL signal-caller and current analyst Dan Orlovsky suggested during Monday's edition of ESPN's "Get Up" program that the Browns should call the Minnesota Vikings about the availability of veteran Kirk Cousins ahead of the Oct. 31 trade deadline. 

"They are a playoff football team with a good quarterback," Orlovsky said about the Browns. ESPN's Ryan Clark then mentioned that Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski previously served as Cousins' offensive coordinator and play-caller in Minnesota. 

Cousins, 35, is set to reach free agency after the season and neither confirmed nor denied earlier this month that he'd consider waiving his no-trade clause to join a Super Bowl contender if the Vikings asked him to accept a move before the end of the month. The 2-4 Vikings face the 5-1 San Francisco 49ers on Monday night.

Watson, meanwhile, has already missed two games this fall due to a rotator cuff strain/"micro-tear" in his right (throwing) shoulder and more recently was checked for a concussion after he took a nasty hit during the first quarter of Sunday's 39-38 victory at the Indianapolis Colts. Stefanski kept Watson out of Sunday's game even after the 28-year-old cleared the NFL's concussion protocol, but the coach said Monday that Watson remains "the leader" of the Browns and is day-to-day ahead of this Sunday's matchup at the 4-2 Seattle Seahawks. 

According to ESPN stats, Watson entered Monday evening ranked 24th in the NFL with a 41.6 adjusted QBR and 26th with an 80.9 passer rating on the campaign. At that same time, Cousins was 16th with a 55.9 adjusted QBR and sixth with a 100.6 passer rating. 

The Browns restructured Watson's fully guaranteed $230M contract this past offseason and, per Spotrac, theoretically could afford to rent a temporary QB1 such as Cousins if the club puts Watson on the injured reserve list before Oct. 31. Even if Watson becomes unavailable as soon as Tuesday morning, it's unknown if Cousins would waive his no-trade clause to join a Cleveland team that may be responsible for the NFL's best overall defense heading into Week 8.