Upon being hired as the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, Kyle Shanahan planned to be patient and build a roster in preparation for potentially inserting quarterback Kirk Cousins. Cousins was with Washington at the time, but it was a near-certainty that the relationship would eventually end. The 49ers coached rolled with placeholders until that time presented itself.

The 49ers have admitted that they looked into potentially trading for Cousins. However, with the situation in Washington speeding toward an eventual divorce, it seemed to make more sense to wait and see what happened. There was also the obstacle of the strained relationship between the Shanahans and Washington.

Cousins never ended up in Santa Clara with Shanahan. The free-agent quarterback eventually signed a fully-guaranteed three-year, $84 million contract with the Minnesota Vikings in 2018. San Francisco was never an option as the team had already traded for Jimmy Garoppolo.

Former Washington head coach Jay Gruden, now the offensive coordinator with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined "The Kevin Sheehan Show" and revealed what the 49ers were willing to offer Washington in exchange for Cousins. Of course, we already know that then-general manager Bruce Allen and owner Dan Snyder had no interest in dealing the quarterback to Shanahan.