The Minnesota Vikings have had a rough start to their 2023 season. The Vikings finished the 2022 season with a 13-4 record and were considered one of the best teams in the league all year long. Even after they had an eventful off-season moving on from players like Eric Kendricks, Dalvin Cook, and Adam Thielen, the team still expected to be competitive this year.
Through the first quarter of the season that hasn’t been the case and many think the team could focus on the future of the franchise. That future could mean moving on from quarterback Kirk Cousins.
Minnesota Vikings Quarterback Kirk Cousins Responds To Trade Rumors Amid Tough Start To The 2023 Season
According to ESPN’s Kevin Seifert:
Kirk Cousins provided a very Kirk Cousins-like response when asked about intensifying public discussion of the possibility that the Minnesota Vikings could try to deal him elsewhere before the NFL’s trade deadline on Oct. 31.
“You know, I am just very focused on the Bears and going 1-0 this week,” Cousins said Wednesday. “And anything else is not worth my time or energy or attention.”
Asked for the first time if there was any scenario in which he would consider waiving the no-trade clause in his contract, Cousins declined to address the premise.
His contract is set to void next March, after the deadline for declaring franchise tags, meaning he has a guaranteed path to the free agent market if he wants it.
The Vikings have lost four of five games and will be without superstar receiver Justin Jefferson (hamstring) for at least four games after he was officially placed on injured reserve Wednesday.
Would The Vikings Actually Trade Kirk Cousins?
The final season of Cousins’ current contract has begun with a 1-4 record. At 35, it is widely believed that he will not be given a contract extension by the Vikings at season’s end.
67.2% of the passes he has attempted in 2023 have been completed for 1,498 yards, 14 touchdowns, and three interceptions. In 2023, things have been totally different for the Vikings. The Vikings were 11-0 last year in one-score games. This year, all five games have ended in one-score contests.
The Minnesota Vikings play the Chicago Bears this coming Sunday on the road. A hamstring injury will keep wide receiver Justin Jefferson out of (at least) the next four games which will impact the Vikings’ ability to put up points even more.
With the way Cousins has been playing, he would certainly have trade suitors throughout the league. The real question is, would the Vikings actually pull the trigger?