Analyst Reveals Ugly Truth Behind Kirk Cousins: He ‘Isn’t Just Playing for the Vikings’

Kirk Cousins

Getty Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins

Following a three-interception outing in a loss to the Atlanta Falcons that capped a 1-5 start to the 2020 season, Kirk Cousins admitted he wouldn’t finish the season if he continued the way he was playing for the Minnesota Vikings.

“You just have to play well in this business. The reality is if the pace that I’m on — in terms of the interceptions —  if that were to continue I won’t finish the season,” Cousins said regarding the prospect of being benched after a league-leading 10 interceptions in the first six weeks of the season.

Cousins has been stellar at protecting the ball ever since.

He ended the 2020 season throwing 24 touchdowns and just three interceptions in the final 10 games. He posted the second-lowest interception rate (1.2%) behind only Aaron Rodgers (0.8%) last season, helping the Vikings commit the fewest turnovers in the NFL.

However, Cousins mitigating his turnover problems wasn’t enough to bring the current Vikings team above .500 at any point in the past two seasons.

It did garner him a one-year contract extension this offseason with new general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O’Connell doubling down on the veteran quarterback after Rick Spielman and Mike Zimmer lost their jobs with Cousins under center.

While Cousins may not have gotten a fair shake with Zimmer, even having a coach like O’Connell, who favors Cousins, may not be enough to unlock another level to Cousins’ game, Pro Football Focus’ Eric Eager asserts.

O’Connell is striving to install a system around Cousins to make him comfortable enough to take more chances despite a reputation of playing overly cautious in high-stakes situations.

However, beyond the pressure from opposing defenses, Cousins be feeling the pressure to protect his future in the league.

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‘He’s Scared to Screw Up His Stats’

Appearing on Matthew Coller’s Purple Insider podcast, Eager and Coller discussed whether O’Connell’s install of the Los Angeles Rams‘ Super Bowl-winning offense is enough to realize the Vikings’ championship ambitions.

Placing Justin Jefferson into the “Cooper Kupp role” has been speculation that’s left fans oozing over Jefferson’s upside in a potentially more pass-happy offense.

But after Jefferson posted the most receiving yards (3,016) in a player’s first two seasons in NFL history and saw the fourth-most targets (108) last season, the question remains whether even bigger numbers from Jefferson in Year 3 will bring more wins to Minnesota, or if it’s merely empty calories with Cousins.

That will come down to whether Cousins can make the right throw in key situations. Last season, the Vikings struggled in numerous high-stakes scenarios, ranking 26th in third-down conversions (36.4%) and converting only 29% on third down between three to seven yards out in the fourth quarter, per The Viking Age. Cousins has shown to be a big-play threat with a schemed play called, but his tendency to avoid risky throws when a play breaks down contributed to the team’s poor third-down conversion rate.

However, Cousins, who’s continued to sign short-term deals in his career, may not have the job security to be comfortable taking those risks, Eager says.

“Is there some meat left on the bone in the intermediate part of the field to give the ball to Jefferson when Kirk is under pressure — when things aren’t perfect? I’m skeptical that Kirk can live in that nuance, but if he can if he’s tough enough to stay in there and take those hits and take chances to throw interceptions,” Eager said. “We know because of contract and all that he’s scared to screw up his stats. That comes back to why the contract is so bad for Kirk, because if you give him a five-year deal, you throw a couple of picks, you still got the job.”

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‘Kirk Isn’t Just Playing for the Vikings, He’s Playing for the Next Team’

Cousins was coming off a 34-31 walk-off win over the Green Bay Packers in Week 10 where he outdueled Rodgers. He completed 341 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions, said he felt he was playing “too aggressive,” a comment Mike Zimmer countered, pleading Cousins keep playing aggressively.

“I want him to keep doing it like he’s doing it. He can’t second guess himself. If he throws an interception, that’s life. But you keep going for the jugular, it’s going to open up a lot of other areas in the running game. It’s going to open up other players. We’ve just got to keep being that way,” Zimmer said on November 23, per The Athletic.

Cousins had thrown 21 touchdowns and two interceptions through the first 10 games of the season and was on pace for 5,000 passing yards. If a few misfortunes had gone the Vikings’ way, Cousins would have been in the mix of MVP conversations.

Cousins fizzled out, throwing five interceptions in the next five weeks and averaged nearly 40 fewer passing yards per game.

But after a more reckless quarterback in Matthew Stafford led the Los Angeles Rams to a Super Bowl despite leading the league with 17 interceptions last season, Cousins may need to lean into taking more risks to see more success — both in must-score and -convert scenarios.

With Cousins circling trade circles the past couple of offseasons, he may not have the level of comfort to do that just yet.

“Given the construction of his current contract, Kirk isn’t just playing for just the Vikings, he’s playing for the next team that’s going to give him the bag,” Eager added.