Getty Running back Alexander Mattison #25 and quarterback Kirk Cousins #8 of the Minnesota Vikings.
The Minnesota Vikings have yet to commit to a path at quarterback, and the situation could remain fluid for the next several weeks.
Minnesota can extend Kirk Cousins now if the franchise so desires and has until mid-March to do so before other teams can begin free-agent negotiations with the QB. Free agency or the NFL draft in late April remain pathways for the Vikings to add a new signal-caller to replace him.
Running back Alexander Mattison spoke with FanSided’s “Stacking The Box” podcast on Thursday, February 8, at Radio Row from the 2024 Super Bowl. During the interview, Mattison made his feelings about Cousins crystal clear.
“I just pray that we get Kirk Cousins back because I love that guy,” Mattison said. “I’ve been playing with him since I got in, and he changes the game, for sure.”
Cousins is a four-time Pro Bowl selection and was leading the NFL in passing touchdowns with 18 before he suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in Week 8 last season against the Green Bay Packers.
Kirk Cousins Ready to Talk Extension in Minnesota
GettyQuarterback Kirk Cousins of the Minnesota Vikings.
Like Mattison, Cousins is also anxious for clarity on his future in Minnesota. The quarterback spoke with Sky Sports NFL on January 30 and said as much.
“Many people who ask, including friends and family, are surprised to learn that the conversations really don’t begin until March,” Cousins said. “I would love to know where I’m going. I would love to get those conversations going now.”
Cousins is currently continuing his Achilles rehabilitation and expects to be fully healthy come training camp, be it with the Vikings or another organization.
“I’m just sitting at home watching the playoffs,” Cousins said. “I don’t have much going on except for rehab, but I really have to wait until the first couple weeks of March to be in those conversations. So that’s what we’re doing. We’re just waiting it out.”
Bringing Cousins Back Likely to Prove Expensive 2-Year Proposition for Vikings
GettyQuarterback Kirk Cousins of the Minnesota Vikings.
The conundrum the Vikings face with Cousins is a product of his age, 35, and the amount of money/years the team must offer him to keep him in Minneapolis. Spotrac projects Cousins’ value at $118.1 million over a new three-year deal. The QB will play next season at 36 years old.
That is an exceedingly risky proposition, considering there are only a few quarterbacks in NFL history who have produced high-level campaigns in their late 30s. However, the general consensus around the NFL seems to be that modern medicine and superior training regimens will allow more signal-callers to have success late in their careers, with Tom Brady serving as the leading example.
Another issue for the Vikings is that Cousins has been good, though short of great, during his six-year run with the franchise. He has earned three Pro-Bowl nods over that stretch, while the team has made the playoffs twice and managed just one postseason victory.
Questions existed before Cousins’ most recent $35 million extension for 2023 (signed ahead of the 2022 campaign) about whether Minnesota could win at a Super Bowl level with Cousins under center. Those concerns persist, despite the quarterback playing arguably the best football of his 12-year career last season — his second in head coach Kevin O’Connell’s system — before suffering the Achilles injury.
Cousins is asking for two years and $90 million fully-guaranteed to remain with the Vikings, which will make the decision difficult. Further complications involve Minnesota picking at No. 11 in the upcoming draft, which is high enough to get them in the conversation for a top QB prospect, though forfeiting meaningful assets in a trade will probably be necessary if the Vikings hope to land an elite member of the 2024 class.