The Minnesota Vikings decided it was time for a trade to bolster their QB room after the offense had regressed over the last handful of weeks with Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz. As a result, the Vikings decided to trade for a familiar face in Kirk Cousins, who returns for a second stint.
After a disastrous QB showing from Carson Wentz on Nov. 9 against the Buffalo Bills, the Vikings traded a 2027 third-round pick to the Las Vegas Raiders for Cousins.
The veteran QB returns to the Vikings for a second stint after playing for the organization from 2018 to 2023. Moreover, the Vikings also brought in a player who was playing well for the Raiders this season.
Cousins has a passer rating of 97.1 with 2,340 yards, 20 touchdowns, and eight interceptions in nine games this season, per StatMuse. On Nov. 11, Vikings general manager Nolan Teasley spoke with the media and shared the reasons for making the trade for Cousins.
“Kirk Cousins made sense for a lot of reasons,” Teasley told reporters. “We’ve had a lot of conversations over the past several weeks regarding a lot of different positions. Ultimately, we saw an opportunity to acquire an accomplished quarterback and improve the Minnesota Vikings.
“There’s familiarity with the offense, the organization, and the coaching staff, along with his level of play and his production this season. Everything just aligned.”
Kirk Cousins Could Maximize Vikings Roster Potential
Moreover, Teasley noted that trading for Cousins will allow them to maximize their roster as the team looks to take advantage of its championship-caliber defense.
“The quarterback position is one that can, in fact, impact the entire team, and this roster, in all honesty, has earned the right to explore the potential to maximize where we can take this thing,” Teasley added. “So we’re excited today to get Kirk in the building and just get him acclimated.
“As this team continues to attempt to improve as the season goes on, we have more games left to play than we have played to date. And so there’s a lot of football left. But again, just from the outset, what we said, we’re just going to continue to find ways to improve our football team. Also, with the trade deadline.”
Minnesota Receives Praise for Kirk Cousins Trade
With the Vikings having a new starting QB, former NFL QB Russell Wilson applauded the Vikings’ aggressiveness in bolstering the position after their back-to-back losses.
“Kirk’s been playing great all year,” Wilson said during a Nov. 10 appearance on “CBS Sports HQ.” “You think about a guy who had some struggles in Atlanta but overcame them and came back in an amazing way. To me, he’s kind of the comeback player of the year in Kirk O’Chains because of what he’s been able to do, stepping up and playing great for the Raiders.
“But now he’s got a plethora of playmakers around him, and he’s got KOC calling the plays. That marriage, that reunion, bringing him back, you could see it on KOC’s face last night, too. He’s thinking, ‘Man, we have to do something. This isn’t good enough.'”
Vikings GM Reveals Clear Reasons Behind Kirk Cousins Trade Decision