that took advantage of the effect and Medivh, a slow but po

RICHMOND, Va. -- While he auditions for the Washington Redskins yet again, Kirk Cousins will be paid almost $1.25 million per game. Thats a lot of money to figure out whether youre interested in having a long-term relationship with your quarterback.Only the second signal-caller to play a?full season under the franchise tag since it was instituted in 1993 (Drew Brees was the first), Cousins received a 2,923 percent raise, from $660,000 last season to $19.95 million on a one-year deal, according to ESPN Stats & Information. However, even after Cousins, whom the team drafted and developed, had arguably the greatest year statistically for a passer in Redskins history, management still has doubts about him.For Cousins to get the multiyear contract he believes he deserves, he must convince the Redskins hes not a one-hit wonder.Great, he had one year, Redskins coach Jay Gruden said at the beginning of training camp. There have been a lot of quarterbacks in the history of the league that have had good, solid, one-year seasons.Under the collective bargaining agreement, the Redskins werent obligated to give Cousins what he wanted -- but theyre in dangerous territory now. If you have a top-tier quarterback in a quarterback league, you dont risk angering him. How the situation is resolved could determine the direction of the franchise for a decade.With Cousins leading the offense, things have been good recently. He was the biggest reason the Redskins won the NFC East last season despite ranking 28th in the league in defense and 30th in yards per rush at only 3.7. Cousins, 27, led the NFL with a 69.8 completion percentage, becoming the first Redskins quarterback to lead the league in that stat since Sonny Jurgensen did it in 1970. Cousins ranked sixth in total QBR and eighth in yards per attempt, and he set Redskins single-season marks for passing yards (4,166) and completions (379).Mike Shanahan wasnt surprised. When the two-time Super Bowl winner coached the Redskins, he drafted Cousins. Shanahan said years ago that Cousins would be a top-10 passer. A lot of people thought I was crazy, but I know what I saw, Shanahan told ESPN.com recently.When youve been around the great ones, there are certain things that jump out at you, and I could see it very quickly with Kirk. The awareness, the ability to make quick decisions, the arm strength -- making all the throws with very little leverage -- the quick release ... we saw it all in practice from Day 1.But its also the intangibles. Hes very competitive. He has the courage. Hell hang in the pocket, focus on the defense, and still be able to slide and feel and go through his reads. Then theres innate intelligence you have to have; Kirk is extremely bright. And one of the biggest things, and Ive seen this in all the great quarterbacks Ive been around, is that the buck stops with Kirk. He takes accountability. Hell put the blame all on himself. Hes already a top-10 quarterback and hell be in the top five. Hes going to be a perennial Pro Bowler.Well, Shanahan is all in on Cousins. Of course, the Redskins arent interested in Shanahans opinion. Among the teams current decision-makers, no one stood on the table for Cousins in the offseason, and thats why the sides never got close on a long-term deal. Talk to people in the organization, and several will tell you that Cousins only had nine good games. At the NFL scouting combine in February, Redskins officials were playing down Cousins accomplishments to their counterparts on other teams.Bottom line: The Redskins dont totally believe in Cousins. They also couldnt permit him to become an unrestricted free agent. Now, Cousins has to do it again. And again and again, Gruden said.Its about having two, three, four years, he said. Luckily for us, were in a position to look at him another year.Although Cousins is way too smart to negotiate in public or say anything that would potentially anger owner Daniel Snyder -- Im not lying awake at night. I got a pretty good raise, Cousins said -- he often has said he wants to be where hes wanted. The only reason Cousins is with the Redskins is because Shanahan and his son, Kyle, who spent four seasons as the teams offensive playcaller, pushed to draft him in the fourth round in 2012 after Snyder and team president Bruce Allen traded four high-round picks for the right to take quarterback Robert Griffin III second overall.Snyder doted on Griffin, who had a spectacular rookie season. But Griffin subsequently suffered a major knee injury, struggled in the pocket and became a divisive force within the organization. He is now trying to rebuild his career in Cleveland. Entering his fifth season, Cousins for the first time began training camp atop the depth chart and with a unified locker room following his lead. He even had a solid preseason game Thursday night; as ESPN Redskins reporter John Keim wrote, Cousins showed poise, good decision-making and going through his progressions at a solid pace.He doesnt have to worry about nobody on his heels, star wide receiver DeSean Jackson said. Were all behind him.The question is, for how long?If Cousins has another big year and the sides remain far apart in contract talks, the Redskins could use their franchise tag on him again. Cousins would receive a 20 percent raise over his current salary, taking him to $23.94 million in 2017. Cousins would get a 44 percent increase if the Redskins applied the tag a third time, putting his salary at more than $34.47 million in 2018.The more likely scenario is that if Cousins is tagged again and the sides fail to agree on an extension before 2018, Cousins would be traded. But theres a reason teams dont trade talented passers: There arent enough of them.It did surprise me that they didnt tie him up, and I expect him to play even better this season, Shanahan said. Look at Drew Brees. You think San Diego would have let him get away if they had to do it all over again? When you get guys like Kirk, you dont let them get away.In the NFL, theres nothing more important than getting it right at quarterback. Cousins isnt the quarterback Snyder wanted -- but hes the one the Redskins cant afford to lose. Yeezy Boost 700 Bestellen .ca! Hi Kerry, Heres an interesting one. I know its common knowledge that all players are responsible for their sticks. We witnessed that when Zack Kassian hit Edmontons Sam Gagner in the face after a missed check. Adidas NMD Belgie . Aaron Harrison scored a 22 points for Kentucky (6-1), which has won four in a row following a Nov. 12 loss to current No. 1 Michigan State. Julius Randle overcame a scoreless first half and added his sixth double-double in as many games with 14 points and 10 rebounds. http://www.nmdbelgie.com/kopen-adidas-falcon-sale.html ., for the next three years with the signings on Monday of Daryl Townsend and Michael Carter. Yeezy 700 Waverunner Kopen . Clarkson had been dealing with an elbow injury in early January and will be out of action for at least one week. He has three goals and five assists through 36 games with the Leafs this season. Adidas Tennis Hu Kopen . Cote was eligible to become a free agent Feb. 15. Cote helped running back Jon Cornish run for a league-high 1,813 rushing yards en route to being named the leagues most outstanding player. The last seat for the Hearthstone Championship Tour finale at BlizzCon was filled this past weekend at the Last Call tournament for the Americas. Sitting in that chair is Hao Bbgungun Li, a player not widely known for his tournament experience, but who is still a fixture in the Hearthstone community.Some players earn their reputation with a big tournament win or a popular stream; Bbgungun earned his as a coach and unofficial mentor to several pros, including the NA QQ group, a loose collection of Chinese Hearthstone players that practice together, whose members include three of the last four players standing this weekend. Longtime Hearthstone players will also recognize Bbgungun from Tempo Storms popular meta snapshots, in which he participates as the in-house expert for the current state of Rogue and Druid.Bbgungun rolled his way through the last Blizzard tournament before BlizzCon in commanding fashion. He never faced a game in which he could be eliminated, beating Robert Nostam Matson and Matt Noblord Koutsoutis 4-1 and taking the final in six games over Team Celestials Austin SilentStorm Li, 4-2.The deck list of Bbgungun was fairly conventional, bringing Midrange Shaman, Tempo Mage, Secret Hunter and Yogg Token Druid, not uncommon in a meta that is now very established. The sole exception was eschewing Warrior completely and bringing his Discard Warlock Zoo (or Discolock), a deck archetype that only three of the eight finalists brought with them.Warlock decks have declined in popularity in tournament play the last couple of months -- a rare development in Hearthstone as Zoolock is one of the most popular archetypes historically -- due to its rough matchup against Shamans and Warriors. Additionally, its weak against a large percentage of the mage decks that people are bringing if they choose to face off against Shaman rather than banning it.Bbgungun ended up winning both games with his Discolock, which, as befitting a known deck builder, was teched well in a world in which everyone brings a Shaman. The most iconoclastic tech card in Bbgunguns Warlock build was Young Priestess, a card that hasnt actually been seen in many Zoo decks since the very early days of Hearthstone. Its a 2/1 that gives a +1 health buff to a random friendly minion at the end of the turn, potentially allowing a minion to survive the inevitable Malestrom Portal. Crazed Alchemist is another solid tech inclusion in Shamanstone, a card that allows you to instantly flip-kill a Mana Tide Totem, a Flametongue Totem, or a particularly inconvenient Stoneclaw Totem.Neobilitys missed lethalTheres nothing like a giant misplay on the big stage to make you look back in regret. At last years BlizzCon, Pavel Pavel Beltukov made a giant blunder against Adrian Lifecoach Koy, playing his cards in the wrong order by not killing Sylvanas Windrunner before playing Dr. Boom, giving Lifecoach a free 7/7 and losing a crucial game.Wu Neobility Guangnans mistake at Americas Last Call proved equally damaging. On turn five, with two Lightning Bolts and a Lightning Storm in-hand (the latter doesnt attack face but buffs the Tunnel Trogg), Neobility had exactly 19 damage available and SilentStorm at 19 health. The casters also missed this lethal, but it wasnt their seat at BlizzCon in jeopardy, it was Neobilitys. Neobility lost the game, falling to 0-3, and needed a reverse sweep to avoid elimination. And thats noot an easy task, given that you have to win four games with the same deck and if you were that favored against your opponent in those four games, they likely would have banned the deck in the first place.ddddddddddddTheres a ninth class?If you only watched tournament games, youd probably be shocked by the appearance of a ninth class. Priest isnt actually a new class, of course, but it might as well be given its complete disappearance since a brief spurt of relevance back in May before people established that NZoth Priest was not a good tournament choice.Frank Fr0zen Zhang made an extremely rare choice, bringing a Control Priest to the tournament and, like other viewers, I enjoy seeing a unique matchup rather than the umpteenth Midrange Shaman mirror. And an unusual priest it was, playing two Mind Controls, the arena-hero Bog Creeper, and even Sideshow Spelleater, a card that I dont think Ive ever seen in a tournament deck.The Priest lost board and the Warrior facing off against it had 46 health and armor when the curtain fell, and Fr0zen was eliminated from the tournament.The Karazhan metaWeve now had several major tournaments for which to evaluate the impact of the Karazhan cards on the game and its tournament meta. The result? Not much of an effect.The previous adventure, The League of Explorers, with its small set, introduced cards that both created new decks and revived dormant ones. Sir Finley Mrrgglton gave aggressive decks life by enabling heroes with control-centric hero powers more aggressively designed ones. Reno Jackson triggered a whole slew of Reno decks in which card choices were massively altered solely because of Renos inclusion. Elise Starseeker created a new win condition for control decks. Murloc Paladin became a thing, Tunnel Trogg resuscitated Aggro Shaman, and Tomb Pillager gave Miracle-type Rogue decks a card it really was missing.As entertaining as the Adventure itself was, the Karazhan cards, at least so far, have not had the same effect on the game. Despite two very powerful Druid cards intended to push Beast Druid, the Yogg Druids got Arcane Giants and so remained the top Druid deck. The various cards that drew or buffed beasts, dragons, and murlocs didnt spawn decks that took advantage of the effect and Medivh, a slow but powerful card, turned out to be simply too slow in a tempo-driven game.Even Barnes, one of the most-hyped cards by the community, while seeing play, only has been included as Dragonling Mechanic with Maybe an Upside rather than one that spawned a new type of deck. In tournaments, there are no Purify Priests. Swashburglar and Ethereal Peddler didnt allow a Thief Rogue to be better than Miracle Rogue. Warlocks two discard cards introduced, Silverware Golem and Malchezaars Imp, simply enhanced the existing Zoolock deck into a Discolock variant rather than creating any all-in discard decks. Malestrom Portal and Spirit Claws just made Shamans better at what they were already doing.Blizzards nerfs of problematic card helps the game long-term, but to really shake up the tournament scene, well need a new expansion -- likely to be announced at BlizzCon on Nov. 4-5 -- and the shakeup when the Blackrock Mountain, Grand Tournament, and League of Explorers cards all rotate out of Standard format. ' ' '