[sdskinsfan2001]

I'm not sold on Cousins as elite, but he is better than Alex Smith by a long shot. Cousins is a tier 2 qb, Smith is a tier 3. There's a big difference between the 2 tiers. The main question is: is a tier 2 qb worth 23+ million a year? If Cousins will sign for 22 or less we just about have to take the gamble. Any more than that and you can justify thinking of other options.