It looked like an simply change for Kirk Cousins and Kyle Pitts. However minute did the brandnew Atlanta Falcons teammates know, converting jersey numbers would finally end up being an excessively expensive resolution.
Cousins has used Refuse. 8 because the 2014 NFL season with Washington. Pitts has been Refuse. 8 since getting into the league in 2021. So next Cousins chose to leave the Minnesota Vikings, the place he’d used Refuse. 8 since 2018, and attach the Falcons, there used to be a query — posed by Pitts on X — about who would put on the quantity in the future in Atlanta.
It occurs continuously in sports activities the place a participant will short a take a look at or reward a teammate one thing particular — like a Porsche, for instance — to bring to procure a jersey quantity. Throughout his introductory press convention, Cousins mentioned he reached out to Pitts and presented up cash or a charitable donation in trade for Refuse. 8. Cousins mentioned Pitts jokingly asked for extra goals nearest season in trade.
In truth, as Cousins instructed The Big Podcast with Shaquille O’Neal this date, Pitts used to be already taking a look to modify his quantity for the 2024 season. It simply took place to figure out that Cousins signed and has used Refuse. 8 within the date. But if they wished to build the trade professional, the NFL stepped in and instructed them that the change used to be conceivable, but it surely used to be going to price them for an excessively particular reason why.
“He wanted to switch numbers anyways, so it was like a perfect fit. He was like, I want to switch numbers, you want No. 8, this is perfect,” Cousins mentioned. “I was like, great. And then the league spoke into it. It was like, ‘Well, Kyle Pitts has a lot of jerseys that are No. 8 with Pitts on the back. You would have to buy every single one.’ … Both of us would have to write the check. … It was several hundred thousand [dollars]. So I was like, I’m good with 18. And Kyle was like, I’m good with 8. So we’re going with 8 and 18.”
A related condition took place in baseball previous this past. When Carlos Santana signed with the Minnesota Twins in February, pitcher Joe Ryan, who has used Refuse. 41 since 2022, used to be keen to surrender the quantity to his brandnew teammate. The one condition used to be, in accordance the Collective Bargaining Agreement, quantity trade requests should be made by means of July 31 of the former season. If Santana in point of fact sought after Refuse. 41 for the 2024 season, it was going to cost him $225,000 to shop for out what used to be in MLB Licensing’s stock for each avid gamers.
Refuse take a look at used to be short and Santana has been dressed in Refuse. 30 for the Twins this season.
Cousins will breaking in underneath middle dressed in Refuse. 18, which were in the past used by means of extensive receivers Mack Hollins and Calvin Ridley.
