# John Middlekauff: Middlekauff predicts Kirk Cousins will be cut within about a week, that Sam Darnold will land a multi-year deal worth roughly $100 million as an immediate starter, that Jaxson Dart will gain momentum as a potential first-round pick, that cam Ward may skip throwing at the combine, and that Derek Stingley will get around $100 million this offseason. **Claimed:** Mar 1, 2025 **Pundit:** John Middlekauff — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/pundits/john-middlekauff **Outlet:** The Colin Cowherd Podcast (podcast) — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/outlets/the-colin-cowherd-podcast-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air or in an interview **Original:** https://omny.fm/shows/the-colin-cowherd-podcast/colin-cowherd-podcast-prime-cuts-matthew-stafford 3 checkable claims — 1 depth chart call, 1 mock draft pick and 1 trade and signing call — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet. It names 3 players and teams, each linked to their own record. All 3 have settled, averaging 66.7 out of 100, against 83.3 for a naive guess at the same calls. > I still think at minimum he's going to get a Baker Mayfield this year, one hundred million dollars type contest, isn't he? *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Kirk Cousins to move** - Kind: Trade and Signing Calls · About: Kirk Cousins - Verdict: scored 0 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess - **Jaxson Dart to be picked “potential first round pick” (picks 1–32)** - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Jaxson Dart - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess - **Sam Darnold to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Sam Darnold - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess ## Who this take is about - Kirk Cousins — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/kirk-cousins - Jaxson Dart — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/jaxson-dart - Sam Darnold — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/sam-darnold ## What others said about the same people - Daniel Jeremiah on Kirk Cousins: Jeremiah walked through his mock draft 3.0, slotting Cam Ward first overall to Tennessee, Abdul Carter to Cleveland at two, Shedeur Sanders to the Giants at three and Travis Hunter to New England at four, plus roughly twenty other first-round pairings. He also called Matthew Golden the first receiver off the board, said Tyler Booker would climb back into the latter third of the first round, expected Kirk Cousins to be traded, thought Jaire Alexander's Packers days were numbered, and predicted Cam Robinson would start at left tackle in Houston. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/c5de01a8-6e40-436d-9e04-07e1d39e54ae (scored 0) - Colin Cowherd on Kirk Cousins: Cowherd laid out his full NFC projections: division order in all four divisions, four division winners (Eagles, Lions, Falcons, Rams), three wild cards (Commanders, Bears, Seahawks), and predicted the Falcons, Bears and Seahawks as new playoff teams. He also predicted Tennessee would be a surprise team with Cam Ward. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/70a33017-06a6-46ed-9114-1bcc0c468383 (scored 0) - Justin Penik on Sam Darnold: Pennock predicted Sam Darnold to Pittsburgh, Zach Baun re-signing in Philadelphia, Charvarius Ward and Jamien Sherwood to Washington, Cam Robinson to Chicago as left tackle, Cam Bynum to the Jets, Darius Slayton to the Chargers, Aaron Jones back to Minnesota and Aaron Rodgers to the Giants. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/4af0c93c-46f5-4a2c-ae24-e6ffa81a6559 (scored 0) - Rich Eisen on Sam Darnold: Eisen predicts three quarterbacks go in the first round, with Jaxson Dart taken late in round one, and says three running backs in the first would be a surprise; he also insists Shedeur Sanders will not fall out of the top 10 and picks the Rams to win the NFC West while keeping the Eagles as the NFC favorite over Washington. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/b7b4272f-1a0d-4a49-aa8d-9c4e0fafe7f4 (scored 100) - Chris Brockman on Sam Darnold: Brockman floats several overreactions: the Titans trade the No. 1 pick, at least six QBs and RBs combined go in round one, Shedeur Sanders falls out of the top 10, the Rams win the NFC West, the Deebo Samuel trade makes Washington the NFC's team to beat, and Sam Darnold leaves Minnesota for $50 million a year. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/f5a95573-4efe-4e21-89cc-287b362c5823 (scored 100) - Chris Brockman on Sam Darnold: Brockman floats a series of overreactions: the Titans won't make the first overall pick because someone trades up, at least six quarterbacks and running backs combined go in round one, Shedeur Sanders falls out of the top 10, the Rams win the NFC West, the Commanders become the team to beat in the NFC, and Sam Darnold leaves Minnesota for $50 million a year. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/a2b07104-54ed-4c96-9d46-9aa0edca856a (scored 100) ## More depth chart calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Matt Severance on Deshaun Watson: The CBS Sports preview backs Tampa Bay to beat Cleveland in the Bucs' Week 2 home opener, and states that Deshaun Watson — not Shedeur Sanders — will be Cleveland's starting quarterback in Week 2. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/944568ce-7205-409f-8354-a392016fd8bf (scored 100) - Rafael Zamorano on Deshaun Watson: Zamorano reports Watson will start Week 2 at Tampa Bay and suggests there's little reason to expect improvement, raising the possibility Watson's five-year contract never yields more than single-digit wins. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/d7d7e0a2-61e0-4525-970b-b01a2356f11b (scored 100) - Rich Hribar on Tua Tagovailoa: Hribar expects Tua Tagovailoa to be Atlanta's starting quarterback for Week 2 while Michael Penix stays out, with Penix's return closer to Week 4. He is unenthusiastic about the Falcons' offense either way and treats Bryce Young as a fringe fantasy starter. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/124ac755-a942-4382-8bad-177da7f8170d (scored 0) - Bradley Locker on Carson Wentz: PFF's unsigned adjusted power rankings after Week 1 of the 2026 season place the Bills first, the Rams second and the Dolphins last, with notes on quarterback situations in Seattle, Minnesota and Cleveland. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/a3716f21-0488-4fc8-a414-c25c2d781a6e (scored 100) - Tyler Sullivan on Michael Penix Jr.: In a Week 1 recap with no named byline, CBS Sports suggested Michael Penix Jr. would take over as Atlanta's Week 2 starter if healthy, called Ashton Jeanty's sophomore breakout imminent, and warned readers not to overlook San Francisco as NFC West winners. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/1000d8d0-5de1-405e-b8ce-255cde75a32d (scored 0) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Rashod Bateman: In his Week 2 waiver wire column, Fitzmaurice recommends a slate of pickups he expects to outperform their current rostership (Kaelon Black, Deebo Samuel, Tyler Shough, Geno Smith and others), lays out several depth-chart expectations (Black as the 49ers' No. 2 back, Shedeur Sanders eventually taking over in Cleveland, Penix returning for Atlanta), and flags Fool's Gold/drop candidates such as Mike Gesicki, Kendrick Bourne and Rashid Shaheed. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/6218d3c2-61e7-4ace-9976-b51eeefdf22c (scored 0) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/corrections?pundit=john-middlekauff